Chronicle
by ThePhantomScribe
Summary: Remnant is said to be in a time of peace... but with mounting forces of Grimm, Jaune's growing power, and the arrival of a strange dark force on Remnant, events have already been set in motion that are far greater than anything the characters in this RWBY AR can imagine: the revival of the Great War! Hilarity! Tragedy! Fluff n' Stuff! Coverart by me! Volume 3 Ch 3: Renaissance
1. TABLE OF CONTENTS

**_CHRONICLE_**

**TABLE OF CONTENTS**

* * *

_Preface_

_**Volume 1**_  
_The Valean War_

The Knight  
The Healer  
Team JNPR  
Team RWBY  
Fighting Fire  
Sparring Match, Pt. 1  
Sparring Match, Pt. 2  
The Forge, Pt. 1  
The Forge, Pt. 2  
The First Day  
The Headmaster, Pt. 1  
The Headmaster, Pt. 2  
Crossing Paths  
The Heiress  
The Brewing Storm  
Team VNDS  
The First Mission  
The Trace  
The Darkness  
Revelations, Pt. 1  
Revelations, Pt. 2  
The Bonds We Make  
The Hometown, Pt. 1  
The Hometown, Pt. 2  
The Loner  
The Cryptic, Pt. 1  
The Cryptic, Pt. 2  
The Calm Before the Storm  
First Blood, Pt. 1  
First Blood, Pt. 2  
The General  
Retribution, Pt. 1  
Retribution, Pt. 2  
Retribution, Pt. 3  
The Eye of the Storm  
The Betrayal, Pt. 1  
The Betrayal, Pt. 2  
Finding North  
The Landfall Ruins  
Redemption  
The Valean War  
Epilogue: 28 Hours Later

_**Volume 2  
**__The Trials_

Prologue: 28 Days Later  
The White Knight  
The Hammer Maiden  
The Spartan  
The Stoic  
The Boy  
The New Arc  
The Master Healer  
The Blacksmith  
The Vagabond  
The Iron Cryptic  
The Crimsonette  
The Rising Heiress  
The Catgirl  
The Brawler  
The Kickoff  
The Twins  
The Newcomers  
The Contender  
The Might of Arkos  
The Unexpected  
The Finals  
Epilogue: The Turned

_**Volume 3  
**__The Storm_

Prologue: The Grave  
Echoes  
_Initiation_  
_Renaissance_  
_Team CAST_  
_Ships Set Sail_  
_Elysian Gala_  
_The Comedian_  
_Excommunication_  
_A Tale of Two Kingdoms_  
_Rancor_  
_Dark Haven_  
_Watchmen_

_Future Chapters To Be Determined..._

* * *

_**ThePhantomScribe via FanFiction (c) 2014**_


	2. Preface

**_CHRONICLE_**

* * *

**PREFACE**

.

_Hi there, TPS here! Welcome to **Chronicle**, my first FFnet fic I've ever written that explores a direction that RWBY could go with the addition of OCs, new enemies and ancient secrets that reveal the nature of Grimm, the possible applications of Aura and even the secrets of the Great War. When I started this fic, which was my first writing project ever that didn't need to be turned in to a teacher at the end of the week, I was so new to the site that I didn't even know how to put dividers in the chapter text! _

_But I digress._

_One thing you'll soon notice is that I've removed my original Author's Notes from each chapter; honestly, it's because I'm really clumsy and I have even clumsier friends that look over my profile for me, and this story has been accidentally deleted so many times that classic A/Ns don't really feel right in the chapters anymore :/ So... I've made this thing!_

_One last thing: this is the full-length, three-volume work all in one fic, but I will also be posting each Book in its separate fic - complete with updated chapter-by-chapter commentary - in case you'd like to check those out, too! So enjoy the story and feel free to **fave, follow and review** as it helps show me your support and keeps me motivated to continue improving as a writer!_

_And as always..._

_**Happy Reading!**_

.

* * *

**_ThePhantomScribe via FanFiction (c) 2014_**


	3. Vol 1-1: The Knight

**_The Knight  
_**_-I-_

* * *

Jaune smiled to himself as he leisurely walked along one of the outer corridors of the illustrious Beacon Academy, renowned in all of Remnant for having produced some of the most powerful Hunters and Huntresses in history.

And there he was, _he,_ Jaune Arc! And in his second semester, things were really starting to look up.

Overall he had come a long way, greatly improving his swordplay and tactical prowess, and thanked the amazing team he had come to lead for it. And though they had yet to discover his semblance, as nearly every other student in Beacon already had, Jaune was continually improving at manipulating his aura with each passing day, leaving even his red-haired mentor in silent awe.

And sure enough, as he rounded the corner he saw her and the other two members of team JNPR heading in his direction.

Pyrrha seemed happy to see him as she came forward to greet him first, but also seemed to be trying to remain calm about something. Jaune had gotten to know his teammate's mannerisms to a point where he could tell if she was only smiling to be polite in situations she thought were totally ridiculous.

Which was a bit ironic, considering that he was still completely oblivious to the fact that she was head over heels for him.

"Hi Jaune! Finish class early?"

He _had_ finished his last class early, Tactics and Strategy, which surprised him. It was a leaders-only elective, and he was doing exceptionally well in the subject.

'I just wish my _other _classes were going as well', he thought in reference to his sparring matches and history courses. He returned his attention to his partner.

"Yea! Hey um...what are Ren and Nora doing?"

There goes that 'polite smile' again.

"Uh.. the _usual_.."

As the two got closer, they could now hear what was beginning to grate on Pyrrha's nerves.

"Oh! I got another idea for a secret signal! RAWR!~"

Pyrrha facepalmed before Ren responded.

"Easy, that's a warthog."

"No way!" Jaune interjected as he joined the group, "I think that sounds a little more like a puma."

"What on Remnant is a _puma?_"

"Uh, you mean like the shoe company?~" Nora chimed in.

"No, like a puma. It's a big cat, like a lion."

"You're making that up."

"I'm telling you, Ren, it's a real animal!"

"Nora, I want you to make sure Jaune isn't eating too much red sap again. You know what the sugar does to his head."

"Yes, sir!~" The hyper girl grabbed on to Ren's arm gleefully as usual, saluting him with her other hand.

The stoic had no idea how much she liked him, excusing her usual proximity as a side-effect of her personality... which he had to admit he found adorable.

"Look, did you hear how she roared, Jaune? It was like a _Boarbatusk_. And what kind of animal roars like a Boarbatusk?"

"A wild Boar."

"You need to stop making up animals."

"Clearly, there's no reasoning with you, Ren." Jaune huffed as he crossed his arms.

"Right, well _you're_ the one who wore a dress."

"...Fair enough."

No comeback for that one yet.

After all, the school dance had taken place just the night before. But as Jaune made his way to the food court with his team and Pyrrha by his side, the remark caused his mind to wander over the events of the previous evening.

Last night had opened up his eyes to the possibility of being with the most talented and beautiful Huntress-in-training at the Academy...even though he had to wear a dress for him to realize it. The words on the balcony from the girl walking right next to him still hung in his mind...

_That's what I like about _you_...I guess, you're the kind of guy I wish I was here with. Someone who just saw me for me._

Jaune had felt..._something_...that he had never quite felt before that night tugging at the pit of his stomach when he had heard those words.

Now, he couldn't help beginning to wonder what it would've been like had that conversation continued...

...Uuuntil Nora began her usual antics again.

"Oh! How about a fox!~ It'd be _perfect_!~"

"Now _there's_ a sound that no one knows..." Ren thoughtfully mused as the four students now tried to think of the sound.

Pyrrha, with hand to her chin deep in thought, couldn't help wondering out loud,

"What _does_ the fox say?"

As if on cue, a fox faunus oblivious to his surroundings and wearing black slacks, a white button-up, and an oversized pair of the popular BEETS headphones walked in front of the pensive team singing and dancing along to his favorite song.

"Ha-tee-ha-tee-ha-teeho! Ha-tee-ha-teeho!"

Nora stood triumphantly with her hands on her hips.

"I rest my case!~"

Three groans were her only response.

They continued walking towards the food court as Jaune and Pyrrha strayed behind, usually to avoid Nora's hyperactivity. But whenever the pair walked together, they always seemed to gravitate towards each other, often accidentally brushing their arms or hands against each other which would send sparks coursing through their bodies. Jaune, of course, had no real way of explaining it.

'It's probably just her armor, it must build up lots of static. Poor Pyrrha.'

The truth was, it was simply another one of the Spartan's many casual attempts to hold the blonde knight's hand. Not that he ever noticed.

But with a sigh of inexplicable satisfaction, Jaune now decided to take a pause in his afternoon stroll of the campus to take in the cool air and amazing view.

"Hey guys, don't wait up for me! I'm just going to relax for a bit. It's been a long day."

Ren and Nora simply waved in agreement as they walked off, and Pyrrha, deciding that it'd be wise to let her leader have some space every now and then, reluctantly waved as well with a longing sigh.

Jaune never really understood why she did that everytime they said goodbye. Oh well.

* * *

Realizing where he stood, he turned to look up at the immense statue on the fore of the Academy courtyard, a depiction of his great-great-grandfather standing triumphantly over a slain beast of Grimm during the Great War.

As he brushed aside a lock of blonde hair that had fallen in front of his eyes, he looked at the face of his stoic ancestor on the statue that towered over him and suddenly felt small, invaded with the insecurities he had brought to the Academy in the first place.

'Why am I _here?'_ He thought to himself in dismay. 'How am I- how _would_ I- possibly live up to all that? You were all heroes, but I can't even hold my own against anyone else here! If I can't do this... then what good am I?'

He had let his head sink in dejection with a sigh, thinking back to all the times he had failed to properly defend himself in his hometown, Dorme, much to the disappointment of his parents. Especially his father.

Yet his mother, being the warm-hearted and good-natured person she was, would always come to console him harboring a deeply rooted motherly instinct - no, intuition - that her little boy was destined to one day become a great man.

"Don't forget that you're an Arc", she would often tell him between his muffled sobs into her shoulder, "and there's a reason why you were born one. There's a reason for everything. And you will grow up to do great things."

With those words she could always help Jaune regain his spirits in a way only a mother could know how, helping him grow the courage which would one day indeed propel him into the course for said destiny.

Fighting back a knot in his throat at the thought of his mother's compassion, he looked up again to his stony-faced ancestor, determination in his eyes.

"If only you could help me, Gramps... But look, I'm right here, right now, and I will do everything in my power to protect those who can't defend themselves. Especially those I care about. I _swear_ it."

No sooner had he said that when the most peculiar thing took place.

Suddenly, as if some heavenly entity had heard his silent prayer, a dull, purple-ish(?) light, as Jaune mentally described it in his confusion, coalesced like a fluid around each of the statue's eyes.

Both points of light met like water droplets running along glass, dribbling down the statue and emanating wispy tendrils as if from a weak flame and then straightening out as a long, purple-ish line (for the love of dust, Jaune couldn't put his finger on the exact color) at the base of the statue.

"What the world?..." He muttered to himself as he crouched to get a better look at this surreal object. He blinked his eyes repeatedly.. nope, still there.

A crack of light seemingly too thin to pass even a sheet of paper through, transfixed along the base of the statue and glowing that eerie shade of whatever-color-it-was.

He looked up and around and found no one. It was to be another hour until students poured out of their classrooms to fill the open spaces around the school.

Turning back around to the subject of interest, he leaned forward in his crouched position to get a better look at the...line...when suddenly, as if pushed by some unknown force, found himself falling towards it.

And then, in an impossible feat of the physical world, he fell _in._

* * *

"_So_," the orange-haired girl began politely as the three students sat down at a food court table, "when are ya gonna tell him?~"

"Tell who what?" The redhead Spartan replied with confusion.

"When will you tell Jaune..." Ren replied with a small smirk, his thought getting finished by a cheerful Nora.

"...that ya _like_ him?~"

Pyrrha started to blush.

"I-I don't know what you both are talking about..." She defended, looking away from her two antagonists as she meekly chewed on a forkful of food. Ren sighed.

"Pyrrha?" The Spartan reluctantly glanced at the calm stoic, who now crossed his arms in front of him on the table before continuing.

"...This is an intervention."

Pyrrha gulped, pushing her food aside as she decided to face her attackers.

"Come on, Pyrrha!" Nora continued with a grin, "Ren and me saw you two at the dance talking at the table, you were both so _cute!~ _It's practically inevitable you know, and all of us know it!"

"All of us except Jaune!" The red-head responded too quickly to stop herself, finally confirming her smiling friends' suspicions.

"Of course..." The stoic began with placid serenity, "Jaune can be a bit...dense. You should do something about that."

"No, I _shouldn't_." The Spartan crossed her arms, almost pouting at the disappointment she caught in her own voice, "I'm confident that our relationship can grow without any added _help, _and I don't doubt he'll notice...soon!"

Two pointed stares from her friends.

"...Eventually?"

Another moment of silence.

"Ugh..." Pyrrha buried her head in her arms on the table.

Giggling, Nora spoke up, "Don't worry, Pyrrha, I'm sure he will!" Pyrrha didn't even bother to lift her head.

"You really think so?" She responded from behind her crossed arms with a muffled voice.

"Sure! And besides...you can always use that special dus-"

"NO." Both Ren and Pyrrha responded, glaring at the startled Nora.

"Not after what happened the first t-time..." The stoic shuddered as he spoke.

* * *

The stories changed about how Jaune had come into contact with pheromone dust earlier that year since the incident had muddled the blonde's memory. Some said it was a prank, a few others, a misdelivered vial, and an even smaller group still, through a heroic attempt to stop a dust robbery in Vale.

In reality, it was due to a chemistry experiment gone wrong.

Jaune and his red-cloaked fellow leader were working on an assignment from Professor Peach's class when the high dust concentration in the air made the younger girl sneeze, coating the blonde in a cloudy concoction of the open dust vials she dropped which ignited at his feet and bonded on him to form pheromone dust.

Over the next two days, chaos had ensued. Nearly all of his admittedly attractive friends were now fighting for his more intimate attentions...massages, mostly...along with half the female population in Beacon. He was chased down every hall and walkway, matters only getting worse when said females actually confronted each other.

Let's just say, big things got broken.

And then, having been exposed to larger quantities of the dust as his roommate, even Ren had started losing his mind...of course until Nora slapped him out of it. With the blunt end of Magnihild. The dust, however, seemed to have no effect on her.

As bad turned to worse, the fiasco had even threatened to destroy the academy until the Headmaster finally reached the blonde knight, forcefully feeding him the antidote. Thankfully, everyone was more than happy afterwards to put those events behind them. In a cold, forgotten place. Never to be spoken of again.

* * *

"_Definitely_ not." The Spartan agreed whole-heartedly an she recalled the events.

The two students watched the redhead gazing out the window towards the statue where they had left their leader as she let out a long sigh.

"Dont worry," Ren began with a reassuring smile, "you both still have plenty of time left together here at Beacon. Besides, it's not like the world's gonna end anytime soon, right?"

The Spartan grinned at the stoic's valid point. She intended to make the most of it.

* * *

After some undefined amount of time, Jaune woke up to...nothing.

He looked up, down, and all around. There was nothing, _everywhere._ His anxiety came to a peak when he realized in horror that he couldn't even see himself, he was just a consciousness floating in the black void.

'An abyss', he thought.

'Ok, Jauney-boy. Keep it together.'

'Just keeep it together.'

...

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"

He screamed in frustration and terror, hoping that he would wake up from this terrible nightmare or be within earshot of someone who could come and help. Though at the same time, he kinda didn't. That shriek had come out at least an octave higher than any acceptable masculine pitch...

"WHAT. IS THIS PLACE?" He frustratedly thought out loud, hastily trying to find his bearings in this place with no direction.

_Who are you._

That deep, low voice came so unexpectedly that Jaune had almost failed to hear it. Though extremely surprised, his frustration wasn't about to let him engage in any formalities.

"What does it matter. LET. ME. OUT OF HERE!"

_WHO ARE YOU!_

The immediate deep bellow of a response was so strong that it almost felt like it was ringing Jaune's ears, if he still even _had_ ears in that void. But now, Jaune was mad.

He decided to use the one tool he may still have had: his aura. He willed his entire being to force some way out of the shackles of nothingness, for a moment almost feeling something come through as he saw a glimmer of white light at some distance. It faded as quickly as it came.

_An Arc..._

Upon hearing the subdued, almost awed tone at the mention of his name, Jaune figured a response could be his best bet to a ticket out of this hell hole.

"Yeah that's right! I'm an Arc, Jaune Arc! Now what the Dust is going on here!?"

_A Storm is coming._

"Great. So you sucked me into this place to tell me I forgot an umbrella. Thanks. Care to ELABORATE?"

_War, young Arc._ The voice almost sounded worried after having calmed down. _Only few remain who can halt the onslaught of darkness. Great peril lies ahead_.

'Oookaaay', the now attentive Arc thought. "But we're in a time of peace. Even if we weren't, what does this have to do with _me_?" He had momentarily stopped trying to force his way out, but his worries only increased with the response.

_Everything_.

"Wha-..."

_You may be Remnant's greatest hope in the war to come, though you will not be without aid._

Not feeling very soothed at the amendment to the initial response, Jaune could only muster, "And what help am I to expect?"

The voice only responded,

_The Hallowed Arc_

_With aura's grace_

_Shall make his mark_

_Along the Orchid's Trace._

Dumbfounded, Jaune sputtered, "Wai- WHAT!? T-That's supposed to _HELP?_" But no sooner had he said that when he felt a sudden rush of wind, a whistling howl that threw around a growing swirl of white light shining so bright he had to cover his eyes...

* * *

And after removing his hand, which he quickly kissed upon realizing he still had limbs, he got up to see that he was now on the cliffs by the Emerald Forest.

Standing up straighter, he stretched and flexed his arms and legs to make sure all was in working order, and it all seemed to be fine. Yet, at the same time... it wasn't.

'Hmm, that's weird', he couldn't help musing as he realized his entire body was still glowing a soft white, much as it had been when his aura was unlocked all those months ago, 'did I really try so hard to get out of that thing in the statue?'

One thing was for sure. Jaune felt _strong_, stronger than he had ever been... but at the moment, exhausted. He looked around the cliffs, catching the fleeting leaves blowing through the air among the dimming rays of the setting sun with tired eyes when he noticed the faint outline of the shattered moon above. Sighing lightly with relief that he was still alive and with a fair measure of confusion over what had happened, he looked back down at the treeline in front of him.

Which was when he realized he wasn't alone.

"What the-..." Jaune now cautiously approached the sprawled figure of a young man, seemingly unconscious.

He was a rather tall but well-built young man, at most maybe a year older than Jaune. As he looked him over, he noticed his face looked like he had been sleeping; peaceful, at least. No indication of being a psycho killer or anything.

He had strong but balanced facial features which seemed to fit his auburn complexion, a naturally deeply furrowed brow along with a defined jaw and lightly curled short black hair.

But what struck Jaune as interesting was that this young man was dressed in rather casual clothes much like he himself preferred - plaid flannel shirt and jeans with a pair of Converse to boot.

No armor. No weapon.

"And no signs of breathing." Jaune muttered to himself in apprehension. "Help! Anyone there?" He saw the sun beginning to set over the lower balconies of Beacon.

"Ack, I'm gonna have to carry this guy. I hope he's not heavy."

He was.

But on his way back, all he could think about were the words said in such a vague way...but from such a vaguely familiar voice...but that train of thought was to be interrupted as he neared the academy just before sunset.

The nurses in the infirmary would ask too many questions, Jaune thought, so he had no choice but to find medical aid elsewhere...

And who better than the school's most promising Healer-huntress to be?

With a grunt after readjusting the unconscious heap over his shoulder, he made his way haphazardly to her dorm. The dorm of a certain Velvet Scarlatina...

* * *

**_The Valean War_**  
_TPS (c) 2014_


	4. Vol 1-2: The Healer

_**The Healer**  
-II-_

* * *

Three loud knocks on the door. Actually, two of them sounded like kicks, the third sounding like someone was trying to knock the door down entirely...

In any case, Velvet was quite surprised at the sudden noise, her usually droopy bunny ears perking up to the racket on the other side of her door.

"H-Hello? Who is it?" She asked meekly.

* * *

Her only visitors were usually nurses bringing in sick or slightly wounded students for her to practice using her unusually strong healing aura, and that was usually during the day, rarely in the early hours of the evening like this...

Not that she ever minded her job nor the hours it demanded at times, she seemed to find an acute enjoyment in what she was good at, letting herself be placed under a positive light to receive praise from others for her commendable work instead of being ridiculed because of her Faunus heritage.

Yes, she may have been finding it a tad _too_ enjoyable, having been caught on more than one occasion joyfully muttering "The messier the better!" under her breath, but then again she was one of the very few students in Beacon with a whole dorm to themselves since she had yet to find a team. Solitude can do that to you sometimes.

* * *

Her attention being brought back to the door with a loud _THUD_ and a weak grunt, she decided to get up to check.

"I'll be right there..."

And upon opening the door, she almost gasped in surprise- and with a certain measure of joyful anticipation- upon seeing the scraggly blonde leader carrying who seemed to be an unconscious random citizen.

"Grrk! T-Table?" Jaune muttered, clearly about to collapse under the weight.

"Oh yes! O-Over here, quickly!" A slightly flustered Velvet sheepishly motioned her unexpected guests towards one of three empty desks in the room.

After almost throwing the young man on an empty table, Jaune slumped back onto one of the empty beds, finally taking a rest after nearly passing out of exhaustion.

'Note to self: hit the weights harder from now on...' were Jaune's hazily fading thoughts before Velvet tried to poke him on the side with her lead pencil, a nervous effort to get him to stay awake. She didn't want TWO unconscious young men in her dorm, what would others say if they found out?

"Um, Jaune? W-What happened?"

"Uh, hmm?" The blonde groggily sat up on the neat bed. It was clearly unused, which was making it even more enticing for sleep. "Oh, um. He, uh... I found him in the forest, passed out. It was getting dark and he seemed like he needed help. I brought him here..." He was hoping that answer was enough to avoid the obvious question which may follow-

"Oh, well why didn't you take him to the infirmary? I'm sure they could take a look at him there." Nope. It wasn't enough.

"Well, yea... about that. I was kinda hoping you could take a look at it and all, seeing that it's a strange situation and stuff... and I know you're like the best girl for the job! Or bunny.. or- yea." He scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, not sure what to say to avoid saying anything important...

But being caught off guard by the awkward compliment, Velvet readily acquiesced. "Oh, well of course! I-I mean, I'd love to help- I owe you for what happened in the cafeteria with Cardin and the rest of his team..." the last time Jaune had seen Cardin picking on Velvet, he had stood up for her, Cardin deciding to step back as he had remembered their agreement in the forest.

Jaune didn't doubt the girl could defend herself against Grimm, but figured she tried to be more peaceable with other humans and Faunus. He had yet to see her draw her weapon, which she always kept stored in a small wooden box with a heart-shaped lock.

"So uh, so you'll help me then?" He asked with a hint of doubt still present in his voice.

The bunny-faunus, shy as ever, merely bowed her head with a small smile, "O-Of course, Jaune..."

To this, the blonde let out a loud sigh or relief. And possibly exhaustion.

"PHEW! Great! Cuz I think he might be in a coma. Or dead."

To this news of a possibly serious medical incident, she merely raised a mildly amused brow and looked him in the eye, a rare occurrence which caught him off guard. He was set at ease when he noticed a ghost of a smirk appear on the shy girl's lips.

"Jaune. I'm a doctor, not a magician."

"Wait, aren't you a Mage or somethin-" Jaune let his voice die down as Velvet simply turned and scurried over to her closet to ready her tools and examine the unconscious young man on her desk.

With eyes half open, Jaune trudged over to the desk to check the young man for breathing.

'Yep, still alive, if at least barely', he thought with relief.

He saw Velvet rush back to the desk, almost tripping on her backpack as she made her way over with a small satchel and tiny flashlight in hand.

"He's been through alot. Looks like his body is still recovering from some sort of trauma.." She stated while checking his eyes with the flashlight, her usual unassuming tone replaced with the professional air of a budding medic.

"Well maybe something attacked him? I didn't see any weapon on him and his clothes seem kinda beat up.." As well they were; upon closer inspection, the clothes were damaged, almost as if they were singed..."a-and I doubt any citizen from Vale would just waltz into Emerald Forest alone, the place is crawling with Grimm."

"Mhm" was her only reply as she continued studying the specimen with growing interest. Suddenly, with a strength that frankly surprised Jaune, she flipped the young man over on his back with one arm, bringing out a pair of thin gloves with the other from her satchel.

"These help me disperse the effects of my aura evenly, keeping me sensitive to the affected areas of the speci- er, patient... aaand they also warm my hands so they're not cold to the touch," She explained with a smile to Jaune after noticing he hadn't stopped looking at her in surprise after flipping the other guy over.

"Well here comes the fun part..." She held her hands over the young man's chest, her gloves glowing a pale green as her aura began to surround them, looking to see where the damge was done. Or at least that was the plan until-

"Hmm. Strange." She withdrew her hands from the young man, checking her gloves with a quizzical look on her face. Jaune repeated her statement with a no less quizzical look on _his_ face.

"Hmm, _strange?"_

"It's fine, nothing to worry about. Must've done something wrong is all." All business and without any hesitation after having readjusted her gloves, she returned her hands to hover over the young man's chest again.

However, after a minute or two of the same reaction as before, her quizzical look had now turned into one of concern.

"Hmm. That _is_ strange.." she mused, then placing her ear over the young man's mouth to check for breathing.

"W-Wait, what's going on?" Jaune pressed, his worry building again.

"Well, I-I just dont... get it..." Velvet muttered, back to her usual unsure tone, seeming as if she were trying to find the right words to say.

"I can usually peer into a person's aura without any interference, w-which lets me know what is wrong with them and start to cure them...b-but, this one is...s-strange."

"What, is his aura like, incompatible with yours or something?"

"No Jaune." Her bunny ear twitched. "H-He doesn't _have_ an aura."

Jaune had to take a moment to process the information. "Wait. What? Does that mean he really _is_DEAD?"

"No, h-he's alive.. i-if barely.. but even then, I should be able to find at least a flicker of it, no matter how weak. But with _him",_ she pointed to the patient, "he has _none._ Can't feel a thing. Can't help him if I can't see what's wrong."

'Why do all these weird things have to happen to _me?'_ Jaune lamented, silently cursing himself while Velvet turned to examine the patient one more time.

"Look, Jaune. I o-owe you one, and this man looks quite s-stable at least. So why don't we let him get more rest and we continue tomorrow before we jump to any... h-hasty conclusions, okay?"

"Sounds good to me. What time is it by the way?" He felt like it was almost morning judging by his exhaustion.

"8:47 PM"

'Figures'. Jaune mentally facepalmed himself. "Well I guess I should be going, my team will probably start worrying abo-"

_Ring, Ring._

Right on cue.

Jaune pulled out to see his scroll, upon which the face of his beautiful- er, vigilant roommate shone over a message written with worry interlaced, asking about his whereabouts.

'Seriously, how could I ever have a chance with a girl like Pyrrha?' The question flashed through his mind as he closed the scroll.

Personal thoughts aside, he needed to get back to his team, and was about to leave the door when Velvet called out.

"Um...J-Jaune?"

He turned around at her unusually shy mention of his name, noting how she nervously twiddled her fingers while keeping her head down, brunette ears drooping as usual.

She really would be adorable if it weren't for her being an afficionado for the mortally wounded. But then there was her adorable accent too! All that aside, Jaune then noticed she was slightly blushing as she glanced over nervously to the out of place item on her desk.

"Oh. Right...that."

* * *

A few minutes later, Jaune finally made it to his room.

_'WHY_ did my room have to be so far?' Jaune asked himself, his legs aching after climbing four sets of stairs under the added weight of some random citizen.

Inside, the rest of team JNPR was in a general state of unrest. Nora had been compulsively bouncing up and down on her bed for an hour, worried about 'Mr. Fearless Leader', as she had come to call Jaune with her version of a term of endearment. Ren was quietly but pensatively pacing the room, hoping that his friend was alright.

Pyrrha sat cross-legged on Jaune's bed, nervously checking her scroll for a response and clearly the most worried of the three, when finally they too received three _THUDS_ on the door. Followed by a muted _WHUMP._

* * *

_**The Valean War**  
TPS (c) 2014_


	5. Vol 1-3: Team JNPR

_**Team JNPR**  
-III-_

* * *

Pyrrha.

Now she was a girl who simply could not be described in few words, no matter how good the writer. She escaped most simple methods of description and could give an author with even the greatest prowess in regards to the written word a run for their money.

But seeing that most boys weren't writers or authors, she had been used to hearing the words _gorgeous, hot, amazing, incredible, talented, skilled_, and an entire slew of one-liners to which she had grown accustomed, and somewhat desensitized, over the years.

In regards to skill, many could only stare in amazement as the Spartan fought, seemingly untouchable. Many speculated that she must've been a Faunus, her senses amazingly acute, honed to track and warn of hidden dangers. She couln't help a light-hearted laugh at such remarks, assuring her fans that she wasn't hiding a tail underneath her outfit.

Still, she was a legend in the making. Some would say she was already a legend in her own right, and that one could tell just by looking at her. And yes, she certainly looked the part.

* * *

For starters, she was one of the few female students who wore armor.

Her top consisted of a low bronze V-neck covered by a thick brown leather lining, split into two vertically and decorated with more bronze patterns, keeping her torso protected without any additional support needed. At her sides and waist, small rivets kept the leather top layer connected to the bronze underneath, keeping it stiff but allowing her ample freedom of movement.

She also wore elaborate bronze greaves that started below mid-thigh, continuing downwards into her boots and a pair of cuisses that began mid-thigh to end slightly above her knees. In addition, she donned a bronze bracer on top of the sleeve on her left arm, which allowed her to be able to connect and disconnect her beloved Miló and Akoúo, Spear and Shield, with general ease.

Though such an amount of armor could easily make somone look bulky and slow in battle, on Pyrrha it seemed to highlight her natural curves, complimenting her toned figure overall and without slowing her down on the field.

Despite her armor, she even managed to integrate a femenine touch to her outfit, wearing an elastic, dark red A-line miniskirt that ended mid-thigh and topped off with a red ankle-length drapery that wrapped around said skirt, along with brown cutoff sleeves on both arms. She also used makeup well, wearing light-green eyeshadow around the far, upper corners of her vivid green eyes.

Tasteful with her choice of jewlery, avoiding any unnecesary show of exuberance, the Spartan also wore a gorget around her neck with a single emerald and a bronze bracelet on the upper half of her left arm. And to bring together both the armored style and her good taste, she wore a bronze circlet headpiece that could be seen above her ear and under the bangs of her long red hair, a pair of small, green, teardrop-shaped emeralds hanging from the sides on thin chains.

She had a nervous tendency of absent-mindedly toying with said tear-drop emeralds when she was worrying about something important, a habit she hadn't noticed yet but that her caring leader found endearing.

* * *

She was toying with them even now as she had been waiting for the blonde knight who no one seemed to recognize- _yet,_ she thought- during the afternoon.

Her acute senses and reflexes were what came to the fore, however, when she heard the loud knocks on the door.

Though she was seated, she was the first one to make it to the door even though Ren was already standing and closer to it than she, beating his reaching hand to the knob. She sensed something was a bit...off. The _WHUMP_ she heard on her way to the door seemed to come from something too heavy to be Jaune...

And upon opening the door, the three members of team JNPR gasped at the sight of two figures on the floor, one unconscious and one fading quickly. Pyrrha thought she heard the latter weakly mumble before letting the warm blanket of slumber overtake him...

"Too many... stairs..."

* * *

Jaune awoke feeling well rested, though a little sore in the legs. He was surprised to find himself tucked in his bed, a worried Pyrrha sitting by him and looking at him with worry in her eyes.

Those eyes, along with her brilliant red hair providing an alluring contrast to her light olive complexion... 'Wow', Jaune thought dreamily...

"Jaune, are you okay?"

"Wha-, hm?" Jaune sat up in surprise, realizing that she was actually there.

He looked over to see Ren, silently studying a laid out figure on what looked to be a makeshift cot on the floor. Nora had gone out to get her fill of her mandatory morning dose of pancakes, the others promising to meet up with her after Jaune awoke.

"How are you feeling?" She repeated, reaching over and resting her hand on his forehead. He felt a pleasing warmth spread through him at the moment of contact. He was beginning to blush.

"Oh, u-um I'm f-fine, thanks." He stammered, his blush now noticeable. And upon taking her hand to guide it back to its owner he didn't notice her immediately look down, blushing a red that matched his own. He was already getting up to join Ren.

"Has he been asleep?" Jaune asked Ren, stretching his mouth open and closed after the first words of the day. He felt like he was still mumbling, he had been so tired after yesterday's events.

"All night," the stoic young man stated, not taking his gaze away from the newcomer. 'Always a man of few words', Jaune thought.

"Wow, you guys even made a bed for him on such short notice, that's really thoughtful..."

"Actually," Pyrrha interjected, suddenly beside Jaune, "Nora had already been working on it. It was to be a cot for Magnihild."

"What."

Classic Nora.

"Yes, she had been saying that it was just as important for our weapons to be cared for and rested as it was for us, said it was something she learned in Proffessor Port's class."

"Seriously?" He was surprised anyone actually payed attention during that class.

"She would", Ren mused, sitting by the hastily built cot and keeping his gaze trained on the laid out figure. He knew Nora too well.

* * *

Not that it took up too much space. The dorm was well laid-out, making use of every space available. Pyrrha's work.

Four beds were at each corner of the room, the entrance on the long side side between Ren and Jaune's beds, with a study desk lined with books on its top shelf on one short end of the room between Ren and Nora, the other having been done away with to save space since the four of them usually studied in the library anyway.

The other short end was taken up by a large walk-in closet door between Jaune and Pyrrha, and across the entrance there was a large drawer with four cabinets, one for each member. It stood underneath a large window, providing ample natural light to the dorm room and a decent vista to the main courtyard, the large statue in the distance.

The "Magnihild Matress", as Nora lovingly called it, was now moved from the foot of her bed to the foot of Ren's bed next to the door, away from the girl he really cared for.

Not that he would admit it. Partly due to his silent demeanor, he didn't have the slightest clue how he would go about telling her.

* * *

Pyrrha caught Jaune furtively glancing over to said statue repeatedly this morning, as he was now. Something seemed to trouble him. She wondered if he was truly ok and hoped he'd come around to tell her what was on his mind.

The Spartan cherished his trust, and though she secretly hoped for more in the future, she was willing to wait to let their relationship blossom naturally, at least for now.

Though, going by how dense Jaune could be, 'That may take a while', she would often think with a certain dejection.

But Ren, now seemingly satisfied after analyzing this newcomer with more scrutiny and hearing Jaune's selective recounting of events which had transpired the day before, finally stood up and reached for his weapons of choice, Storm Flower.

Both Jaune and Pyrrha turned to him as he began to speak, casting a final glance to the seemingly harmless young man.

"Well, it doesn't seem like he'll be a problem. We should get going."

He checked to make sure his twin pistols were loaded and after securing the magazines pulled the slides over each barrel at once, but upon hearing the universal sound of bullets being loaded, the peaceful young man suddenly jerked up, gasping for air and eyes shooting wide open.

And then he started to scream.

* * *

_**The Valean War**  
TPS (c) 2014_


	6. Vol 1-4: Team RWBY

_**Team RWBY**  
-IV-_

* * *

_Click, Click._

Like an alarm, this set off the young man instantly, having finally woken up after what felt like eons of sleep. As his eyes snapped open, a million things went flashing through his mind at once.

_Light. Morning. Awake.  
Room. Desk. Schoolbooks. Beds. Bedroom.  
No. Dorm_.  
_Where.  
Guy. Two guys. Why.  
Out.  
Must get out!_

He tried to get up but was immediately stopped by Ren, but with andrenaline now coursing through his larger frame, the young man immediately started resisting.

It took both Ren and Jaune to pin down the thrashing young man, the guy was _freaking out._

"Stop! We're trying to HELP!" Jaune shouted through clenched teeth, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. He was surprised by how such a peaceful looking fellow could suddenly turn so resistant.

"_STOP_!"

The young man, surprised by the third person who had gone previously unnoticed, suddenly stopped resisting to find the source of the last command. Pyrrha saw him make eye contact with her for only a millisecond, brown eyes full of alarm quickly returning to darting around the room, trying to take in his surroundings as he tensed up again.

"Don't force us to _make_ you stop."

Ren and Pyrrha's gaze now darted to their leader, the two students utterly taken aback at the sudden infusion of authority in his voice. Even the young man's head quickly turned to face Jaune, who's words had finally gotten him to release his tension, if at least with some reluctance. Pyrrha couldn't help but smile within herself at her leader.

Finally releasing his arms, Jaune and Ren stood up and took their places by either side of Pyrrha, surrounding the young man and blocking his nearest exit, leaving him only to sit up in the cot with his back to Ren's bed.

Feeling that she would have the most effect on calming the individual after her effect on him moments before, Pyrrha spoke.

"We do not mean you any harm. There seems to have been some sort of accident, you were brought here to recover."

After a brief pause while looking at Pyrrha, the young man seemed to relax, then finally sighed heavily and responded.

"...Thank you, I appreciate your actions and I apologize for my own." His eyes were studying his three newly identified benefactors. "What happened?"

His voice was calm, deep and fluid, each word well pronounced. It gave him an air of maturity which didn't seem to fit his age, whatever age he was. The three relaxed only a little at his initial show of gratitude. At least he was civilized.

"Well, uh..." Jaune began to explain, "I was in the forest... walking... when I came by the cliff and saw you laying there unconscious. We were miles away from any city hostpital and the sun was going to set soon, so I decided to get you over here ASAP. Where did you come from?"

"I... I don't know," The first sign of faltering in the young man's voice. He had looked down, seeming as if he were trying to search for a respose, but looked back up at Jaune, eyes slightly narrowed.

"You found me in a forest?"

"That's right. Couldn't leave you there, there wouldn't be anyone around for miles. And the forest is not a good place to be after dark."

"...so you brought me to a school."

The response was more of a statement than a question, which was met with three raised eyebrows.

"How did you-"

"Study books lining the shelves and desk in the room. Some sprawled about the beds, indicating night-time studies. Four beds, too many to be a residential arrangement- judging by the modern decor and furnishings- but no equipment to indicate a hospital room. We are at a higher altitude, noting that the horizon cannot be seen outside the window, suggesting this room to be one of many in a large building. No bathroom, so I doubt that this is an appartment. So, your room, relative ages, and...", looking over at the crack of space that the open closet door had left for all to see, "school _uniforms, _all indicate that I am in a dorm at a high school, maybe an academy."

He had listed these points of deduction as if they were items on a shopping list, leaving the three students somewhat agape at his powers of perception.

"But..." he continued, his voice suddenly softer, "I guess a makeshift cot on the floor of a dorm beats lying on the dirt in a dangerous forest anyday. Nobody wants to get torn to pieces. So thank you." He smiled warmly, finally setting the three surrounding him at ease.

"The name's Davin." The young man stood up, reaching out his hand to introduce himself.

"Jaune."

"Pyrrha."

"R-"

"NORAAA!" A loud, jubilous shout on the other side of the door immediately caught the attention of the four, just in time to see the door kicked open and a very VERY excited orange-haired girl walk into the room. "Hellooooo!~ I brought companyyyy!~"

As she moved aside, four more young women came into the room behind her, each one sporting - to the young man's increasing curiosity - a different color theme. Yellow, Red, White, Black. It was almost funny.

After a brief moment of confusion and exchanged quizzical looks between the students, Yellow spoke first.

"Whoa, you look pretty beat up, stranger!" She confidently stood with her hands on her hips smiling, almost as if challenging the recently awakened teen.

Turning back to the young man to gauge his reaction to the off-handed remark, Pyrrha was able to catch a momentarily raised eyebrow...and, was that a gleam of _amusement_ in his eye?

"Heh, you're looking pretty shabby yourself," He replied with a smirk.

He was right. In the rush to get to team JNPR's room to see what Nora had described as 'a dying younger-and-slightly-darker-version-of-Samuel-Witwer from the forest', the blonde brawler had almost come undone. Her orange infinity scarf was noticeably pulled to once side - any other scarf would have fallen off already - her orange stockings were even more noticeably dishevveled, and her hair, though always messy, now resembled a frazzled mane of golden locks.

The young man now noticed the others blink in surprise and expectation and turning to look at Yellow, the one in Black even having put down her book to witness what seemed to be a rare back-and-forth against the blonde, and Red behind her failing to hold back a giggle, eliciting a turned head and a mock angry stare from Yellow, before sticking her tounge out at the presumably younger girl.

'They must be related...' he observed.

Turning back to him, Yellow resumed her original stance and seemingly ever-present smirk. But not before quickly trying to pat down her mass of blonde hair.

"HAH. So you got jokes, huh?" She raised an eyebrow, smirk widening into a mischievous grin, "Wanna test your talk in the arena?"

Seeing the quizzical look forming on Davin, Jaune meekly interjected, "Hehe, hey look, guys. N-No need to get physical over a first meeting..."

Davin smiled, nodding to the uncomfortable leader, "I agree. Besides, I dont even know what 'The Arena' _is_." A snicker from White.

Red, trying to hold back a laugh, snorted instead, "Whaddaya mean you don't know? Who comes into Vale without knowing about the arena?"

"Much less enter into Beacon without knowing how to fight in it," A snooty addition to the question by White. Fight?

The quizzical look returning to Davin's face upon learning about those hostile tidbits of information, he was about to respond when-

"Yeah, RIGHT. Lemme at 'im!" Yellow said, smiling while throwing a 'play' punch at Davin, which may as well have been as fast as a real one.

Before anyone could react, a hand shot in front of him, catching hers in full flight yet completely stopping it in its tracks. Her smile fading immediately, she blinked and looked over at the hand's owner.

Ren.

"Cool catch," Davin said, looking over to the stoic, "You'll have to teach me that one sometime."

"Meh, lucky save," Yellow retorted, breaking into a warm laugh that spread among the others which revaled she had only been joking.

No one seemed tense, so Davin figured she must always joke like that. But still... he made a mental note to be weary of the blonde brawler.

"So, how did you do that?" Davin asked Ren. He was still curious how the guy had managed to stop a punch without even budging.

"Oh!~" Nora stepped in, her cheery disposition no less than when she had entered, "That's his semblance! When he concentrates, he can do that kind of thing and stop most forces just like _that_," she said with an exaggerated snap of her fingers. "It's what makes him special!~" she exclaimed, smiling adorably at Ren as she said it. He couldn't help but grin at his elated partner.

"A whowhatnow?" This place was starting to confuse the young man.

"His semblance," Black spoke up now, her voice monotonous.

"Yeah, I heard that... but I don't understand what you're saying. What _is_ that?"

"It's the manifestation of someone's aura, usually found after their aura is unlocked. Most people never get their aura unlocked, which is why few know about it."

Black had added the last part thinking that the young man must've been part of a less informed sector of society, thinking that her answer would at least serve to bring him up to speed. It didn't.

"An _aura_? What are you talking about? Like the kind of creepy feeling I'm getting talking about all this? I feel like I'm missing the elephant in the room here..." Davin was beginning to feel lost again, exhaling sharply before continuing.

"This is the weirdest day. _Ever_... of all time."

Black couldn't help a small grin at the strangely familiar remark, but now the eight students took another look at the young man. He seemed normal enough, but who on Remnant didn't know what _Aura_ was? They all turned to look at Jaune.

"Uhh, well that's something! Look guys..." he said while moving next to an increasingly confuzed Davin and putting an arm over his shoulder, "I think my friend here is probably not feeling well. Maybe needs some rest? A bit of aspirin? He may have hit himself on the head. Do you know where you came from?"

"I-I dont know. I've been trying to remember, but I can't really remember much before this morning", Davin admitted, his eyes glued to the floor.

"Yep. Hit his head," the brawler quipped. Jaune shot her a glare, catching her by suprise. "Sorry..." she raised both hands in apology.

Now turning to the young man, Jaune felt sorry for him. "Look, we're running a bit late. How about I take you to our first class and get you to the headmaster right after."

"Sure," Davin sighed, then paused for a moment. "What kind of class is it?"

"Sparring matches."

"Oh yeah!" shouted Yellow, "My first class, too! Looks like part two of our little showdown is still to come~!" She grinned while cracking her knuckes, which only put Davin even more at unease.

"All of us have the same first class, you dolt!" White always seemed so hostile...

Black, however, was unamused as she retorted at Yellow's suggestion.

"Yea, and why don't you beat him to death with your _puns_ while you're at it?" The heavy sarcastic tone laced in that suggestion almost made Davin laugh, but he wisely chose to hold back.

Still, as if her face couldn't light up any more, Yellow exclaimed, "that's a GREAT idea! Oh boy, newbie, get ready to feel the PUN-ishment!"

"Eh? Eh?" She turned around to the other three girls she came with while saying this, sporting an ear to ear grin. Black simply uttered "ugh" and returned to her book, White was holding the bridge of her nose, trying to keep her composure. Or temper. Red simply shrunk back mortified, sheepishly shaking her head.

The orange-haired girl- Nora, as Davin recalled her noisily introducing herself- cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, "Booooo!"

Undeterred, Yellow continued. "Oh come on, he'll feel like he got PUN-ched... in the face! Am I right? Am I right?"

Pyrrha and Jaune were beginning to turn red with how hard they were trying to hold back their laughter, Black simply hid her head deeper behind her book.

A beeping noise suddenly brought Red's attention to something in her pocket.

"Ohmygoshclassstartsintwominutes!" she blurted out so fast that Davin couldn't keep up.

At the same moment, everyone else looked down into their pockets and without another word, like bullets from a gun, sped out of the dorm, leaving Jaune and Davin in a settling fury of trailwinds, dust, and loose leaf papers.

Dumbfounded and slack-jawed, Davin could barely spit out, "_H-HOW DID THEY_-!?"

"Yea, I haven't learnt that one yet either. They say it comes with time and practice. Let's go, we're gonna be late," Jaune dragged out a stupefied Davin out of the dorm.

'What kind of school_ is t_his?'

* * *

_**The Valean War**  
TPS (c) 2014_


	7. Vol 1-5: Fighting Fire

_**Fighting Fire**  
-V-_

* * *

Davin looked around as he was dragged through Beacon by Jaune, trying to piece together what kind of place he had awoken to.

He saw the rooms, corridors, students, windows, and the trees and city outside of them. Familiar things, but at the same time...so foreign. Even the thought of school, for something so befitting his age, it felt like something from very long ago. Something simply felt really wrong...

Probably just the fact that he was getting pulled WAY TOO HARD.

"Would you cut it out!? I can run by myself!" Davin yelled, yanking himself free from Jaune's grip.

"Suit yourself! But keep up!" the blonde leader shouted back as he started gaining a lead on Davin.

He slowed down for just a moment, wondering if he should follow the guy or leave this place. That is, until he ran into his first Faunus, a young student who was both human and lizard, a scaly green tail protruding from between his legs.

"Watch it, man!" The boy complained, forked tongue slithering between his teeth.

"GAH!" Davin sped off after Jaune.

* * *

A few minutes later, both boys reached the arena, each of them winded.

Davin, still hunched over, looked up and saw that the students had really meant an _Arena_. The gigantic space was directly underneath the largest spire in the school - some sort of beacon-like clock tower, judging by all the directories he had passed on his way over - and was filled with students.

A very large field was in the center of this place, surrounded by thick walls with many places for anyone on the outside to look into and peppered with holes of varying sizes along the walls and floor that left Davin wondering what came out of them. Surrounding the field were a dozen large spaces, three on each side, and each with a glowing blue circle surrounding their boundaries.

In one of the circles, he noticed two students fighting each other with dangerous looking weapons. One of them had a terrifyingly spiky mace, and he was really wailing on the other guy, a strange headphone-wearing human-fox hybrid, or Faunus as he had heard people call them in his brief time at the school.

Finally having had his fun, the former swung his mace at the latter, laughing as he did it, and hit the Faunus so hard that he flew out of the circle which promptly turned red. It then looked like an adult would come to formally signal the end of the match.

'Wait...' Davin realized.

They weren't kidding. This really _was_ a combat school!

He gulped, stood up straight, and was about to start walking away when the sudden feeling of a vice-like grip on his shoulder told him that he wasn't going anywhere.

"Hey there, newb!" Oh no.

'Why me?' He turned to see the blonde brawler as she began to drag him towards one of the circles.

"Turns out it's your lucky day! Professor ain't here and the sub wont be in for another few minutes, so we get a whole sparring room just to ourselves!" She was grinning the whole time. Was she always so joyful when it came to brutality?

He couldn't wiggle free. In front of one of the sparring rooms, he saw the rest of the students he had met that morning, to whom Yellow greeted loudly, "Okay! The gang's all here! Now we can all fight together!"

They all gathered around outside of the sparring circle after having given Davin a short greeting, and were now turning to look at Yellow. The kid in green really looked worried for the young man, which had Davin fearing what this blonde brawler could be capable of. She now turned her attention to the disturbed newcomer.

"But I get dibs on you first! Don't worry, new guy, I know you may have hit your head pretty hard and all, but you never forget to fight. It's like riding a bike!" Davin was really getting disturbed at how much she kept smiling about this.

"I don't think riding a bike can be that painful."

"Well you get the idea!"

"Then I'd rather pass."

"Nope!" She was really enjoying this. "Hey now, if I wanna fight you, it's cuz it means I like you! And this is the part where we get to see what you got!"

"Um...so _that's_ how they do it here? The thing is, I'm about as good as a simulation soldier armed with a traffic cone. I really don't think I can fi-"

"FINE..."

'Yay!' A silent cheer within Davin.

"...I'll fight you _outside_ the sparring room! That way it's not as embarrassing for you!"

'Crap.'

Knowing he no longer had any way out of this, he had no choice but to relent. "Okay fine, just go easy on me, 'kay?"

"_Hah_, no promises."

The other students made a circle around the brawler and Davin, leaving them a moderate space to spar. The girl in white commented sideways to the girl in red and the blonde leader to her side.

"Twenty lien says the _commoner_ doesn't even last a minute."

"_Weiss_..." The girl in red chided.

"Uh huh, sure..." Jaune replied absent-mindedly, watching the two prospective combatants ready themselves in the circle.

"See? 'Tall, Blonde and Scraggly' right there is in, it's a fair wager! What if I give you _five_ to one odds, hmm?" The girl in white retorted with a conceited smile.

The girl in red glared in response. Weiss was undeterred.

"_Ten_ to one?"

"I'll take some of that action," the girl in black stated from Weiss' other side.

"What just happened?" The Jaune finally asked, oblivious to the heiress' entire conversation.

The girl in red facepalmed as the girls in black and white shook hands on the wager. Jaune, confused by it all, simply returned his attention to the grinning brawler and anxious newcomer.

"By the way, I'm Yang." The blonde brawler began as she faced the young man in the makeshift ring.

"Davin."

"NOR-!" A quick glance from Ren hushed another one of Nora's favorite interjections.

"Heehee, oops!~"

"Well it's a good thing we got that out of the way, Davin", Yang continued, "because I've never beat someone I _didn't_ know into a pulp, and I'd like to keep it that way!"

"Beat me into a pulp, eh? Is that a hobby or something?" He was trying to stall now.

If the subsitute teacher came, they'd have the sense to stop this...right?

"Nope. More of a rep, really!"

"Well don't let _me_ blemish your record." He rolled his eyes.

Yang laughed again. "Right! I just hope you can fight, newbie! Your talk can only stall for so long!" She winked at him before getting into a fighting stance, fists raised above her face and two golden bracelets on each transforming into wrist mounted shot gauntlets. Ember Celica.

"Ready?"

With no substitute teacher to save him, Davin got into his fighting position, imitating Yang as best he could.

"Ready as I'll ever be."

"OKAY!"

Yang charged him, closing the space between them in a second, the first right jab already on its way straight to Davin's face.

And thats when everything changed. At the last possible moment...

_Block, dip left._

Instincts took over before his mind even realized as he ducked below her right arm with surprising speed, throwing Yang off-balance as he guided it away from him, then dipping underneath her jab as he turned up to face her resuming his original stance.

"Wha-" He looked at himself in disbelief. 'How had I moved so fast?'

The young man had just dodged the first punch he could remember ever having received. The pleasantly surprised brawler turned to face him.

"Oooh, got some speed to ya! OKAY!" Another flash of gold came straight at him.

_Block, parry, duck, spin, dodge, push, slide..._

Davin's mind was no longer in control, eyes relayed instructions directly to limbs as he watched himself dodging, evading and defending against this brawler's brutal attacks. Yang was landing a few punches, but the young man was moving fast enough now to minimize the damage as he followed their momentum with his body placement.

"Grr, yah, hyah!" Yang grunted and growled as she normally did once she began taking a fight seriously, each jab, hook and uppercut combo continually parried or barely deflected with swift adjustments from Davin's hands.

He was beginning to feel as if his muscles were already programmed for this, as if they had been trained for this kind of thing long ago, but now was not the time to think or feel, but to _act_.

"Hey newb, stand still for a moment, will ya!?" The blonde cried out, brows furrowed in concentration as the entire area around them seemed to rise in temperature.

Having evaded Yang's flurry of attacks, Davin pushed against the force of an incoming left hook to get himself further back from her, finally sliding away to her side as he was backing up too close to Ren, who was now watching VERY intently.

'He _does_ move pretty quick for a guy who says he's never fought before...' the stoic mused as the blonde was glancing left and right to find where the young man went.

Not amused by his sudden disappearing act, Yang turned with Ember Celica ready to begin discharging its shell rounds, planning for a 1-2 combo to end this match swiftly. Left jab was already on its way to target only a few feet away.

Davin anticipated the lethal combo, knowing the only way to even survive would be to stay close. The jab came in like lightning to the other students who were now watching this match with relish, but to Davin, he had all the time he needed to grab and pull Ember Celica as the punch came in, a sudden _click _as he managed to pull _off_ the gauntlet and reaching for her incoming right cross with his left arm with the sound of another _click_ as that bracelet too came off. All of this happening in about a second.

The motions were so subtle that to Yang it seemed like she had only hit air.

It wasn't until she lifted her fists again, shouting "BRING IT!" at the crafty newb, that she looked down at her wrists only to see that they were now bare.

"Wha-?"

The seven students were in shock as they looked from a disarmed Yang to a VERY confused Davin, who was now holding two shot gauntlets. The entire match had indeed lasted less than a minute.

And Yang was not pleased.

"HEY, NEWB! You trying to hustle me into going easy on you!? Cuz i WILL go all out on your as-!"

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Davin interrupted in full backpedal as he handed Ember Celica to its owner. He thought he could hear the cackling of a flame somewhere... "I really don't know what came over me, it's not something I remember being able to do!"

But still...not wanting to lose the chance to celebrate his brief victory, "Buuut, It's a good thing we didn't enter the sparring room, right? That certainly would've been embarrassing for _one_ of us. And I'm sure you have that 'rep' of yours to protect!"

He stood a few feet from her, the same challenging smirk she had flashed him earlier in the dorm now plastered on his face. Jaune and Pyrrha looked at each other wondering if the young man had a death wish.

Weiss, even more peeved, angrily handed the girl in black a wad of money.

"Ex-CUSE me, Newb?" She took a step forward, eyebrow raised. There goes that sound of flames again...

"Aw, and here I was thinking we were just getting to know each other...", Davin responded with a mock expression of hurt which almost immediately reverted back to a smirk.

She continued glaring at him for a second or two more before a grin sprung out across her face.

"...Yep! I had a feeling I'd like you! And don't take it too personal, we _were_ getting to know each other! I just wanted to see if you'd chicken out first!"

"Hah. As if I had a _choice_." Davin muttered under his breath.

"What?"

"Oh nothing," He responded quickly, "So...how did I do on our first little match then?" His smile returned, but this time warmer. Red answered for Yang, still impressed at how the match ended.

"Well, I've seen almost every one of my big sister's matches, exhibition and competition, and even though I've seen her lose before because she went too easy on someone, I've NEVER seen her disarmed during a match".

"Well that's certainly good to know. Thank you... um..."

"Ruby", the girl in red responded.

"Ruby. I'm Davin." He looked over to Black and White.

"Blake."

"Hmpf. Weiss," she stated, looking away from him with arms crossed. Girl had issues.

"Well then, a pleasure to meet you all." and turning to look back at Yang with a smirk, added, "So I take it that I did well?"

"Meh", she mused over her nails, but looking back at Davin with a grin, replied, "I take it you did enough to get yourself a second date with me in the sparring ring." She winked at him again.

He was starting to like her. She was a challenge. He didn't remember much about himself before that day, but he did learn one thing: that he enjoyed facing a challenge.

Jaune walked over, impressed that the new guy with the underdog status was able to hold his own. It made himself feel like he could do the same as well. Someday. Grabbing Davin by the shoulder, he was too curious not to ask about it.

"So where did you learn to fight like that? I mean, what you did in there was REALLY cool!"

His smile fading just a bit, Davin responded, "I honestly don't know what to tell you, Jaune. I don't know where all that came from, and I _really_ don't know how to fight..."

"You're LYING."

Jaune and Davin spun to see it was Ren who said that last comment, Davin looking at Ren with wide eyes in surprise. The others also turned from their own conversations to hear what had caused such a stir in their otherwise stoic friend.

"There's no other explanation. Your technique was pristine, especially for a guy who 'doesn't know how to fight'. Your style, stance... it all screams _fighter_. And a good one, with good training. Maybe even moreso than Pyrrha here." Despite the accusation, Davin's expression hadn't changed.

"Now, Ren. He said he couldn't remember much before yesterday. Maybe there's a chance he doesn't remember his training yet." Jaune thought aloud, trying to make sense of it too.

"And he does have decent sparring skills under his belt, I'll give him that. Maybe he was trained at another academy or something..." Yang was trying to help out the newcomer as well.

"Well, it's the _'or something'_ part that has me worried...so what do you have to say for yourself? _How_were you able to disarm Yang so quickly?" Ren demanded from the young man, whose original expression upon hearing Ren still remained unchanged.

After what seemed to be a moment or two of processing, Davin was finally able to speak.

"DUDE. I didn't even know you could _talk_."

"Grrr..." Trying to hide a light blush, Ren stomped over to Davin, dragging him away and leaving the two sisters laughing hysterically on the floor. The rest of the group chose to follow, eager to see what would happen next.

After calming down and pulling Davin in front of him, Ren continued.

"That last combo you pulled... it took speed that only an expert aura-wielder could match...or Oobleck. Now I'm finding it hard to believe you could do that without knowing a thing about aura, so there's only one way to know for sure."

"Huh?"

"How are you feeling?"

Davin shrugged, "Okay, I guess. I'm alive."

"_Good_," the stoic calmly replied, "You and me, we're going into the sparring room for a match. Hand-to-hand. NOW."

* * *

_**The Valean War**  
TPS (c) 2014_


	8. Vol 1-6: Sparring Match, Pt 1

_**Sparring Match, Pt. 1**  
-VI-_

* * *

**In any case, Chapter 6 starts now!**

* * *

Davin had to wonder how he had gotten himself into all of this.

Awoken with no memory of his life before this morning, he found himself in a combat school where he had made three friends, which was nice, but had also been picked for two fights already, the second one being against one of said friends!

Who was currently dragging him into a sparring circle. _Why_ did people have to keep dragging him everywhere?

"Are you sure you need to do this?" Jaune asked, following closely behind a bewildered Davin and determined Ren.

"Yes." A one-word reply from the stoic.

"It's just a sparring match," Blake reasoned as she followed as well, "and Davin did very well his first time. His match against Yang barely lasted a minute. This might actually be interesting to watch."

"But you don't understand! Davin...he doesn't...h-he's handicapped!" Jaune didn't know exactly how to explain the situation without causing an even bigger scene.

"And _what_ exactly about him indicates that he has a handicap?" Weiss quipped.

But it was too late. Ren and Davin had entered the circle, casting a pale blue boundary up and around them which would not let them out unless a match was fought and won.

"So here's how it goes," Ren began as the pair reached the middle of the circle, pulling Davin in front of him, "this room is surrounded by a dust barrier which can't be broken unless one of us gets beat right through it or we both run out of aura. So don't think about running. You can't. Fortunately for you, it also minimizes damage from our blows so that none can be fatal..."

He took a few steps back from Davin, who was still standing there in disbelief.

"...so don't worry, I'm not trying to kill you. And to be honest, I believe you. You don't remember who you are, and that's fine. But you remember how to fight. And you fight _well_. So if we're gonna help you remember anything..." He signaled for the countdown to begin to start the match, with the smallest of grins beginning to grow on his lips...

"...I think I know a good way _how_."

Ren crouched down to assume a fighting stance, arms out in front of him, each hand open palmed. Finding himself in another impossible situation, Davin had no choice but to ready himself, the barrier pulsing every second in its countdown to begin. He got down in the same position as he had taken against Yang, hoping his instincts would come to his aid for whatever was to come.

A muted _beep_. The match had begun.

At first sight, one may make the mistake as not seeing much of a threat in Ren, as the stoic youth was dressed only in a diagonally-buttoned long-sleeved green tailcoat and ivory trousers. But the way he carried himself suggested the use of utmost caution whenever crossing this individual, something Davin was making sure to do now.

The pair circled each other, neither opponent altering his stance, only moving their legs deftly in an arc, keeping their gaze set on one another. The seven students had come to the edge of the circle, Yang and Ruby having joined them as well, and even a few other students were beginning to stop by to watch the event. Among them, a certain bunny-eared girl who for the strangest reason struck Davin as oddly familiar.

In the split second that had distracted Davin while looking over to said girl, Ren sprung into action, closing the space between them instantly.

_Feint_.

Thank goodness it was still working. Davin redirected the deceitfully placed left jab to block the real threat - the left kick headed straight for his side. Having used both arms to block downwards, Ren saw his opportunity, shifting his now downward momentum through his hip to immediately bring his right leg up and across, making contact with Davin's unprotected chest with his foot in an aura-infused reversal.

The resulting collision sent Davin flying across the room, landing very close to the barrier. Stopping himself from rolling out, he picked himself up, clutching his chest.

"*ergh* Is _that_ all you got?" Davin winced while taunting. He thought he heard a chuckle outside the barrier. Yang.

With a snicker, Ren began coming at him, not showing any indication of holding back. But Davin had now seen Ren fight, studied his movements.

_Tae Kwon Do._

'Wha- the dust!?' Davin thought to himself with the new lingo as his mind interpreted his instincts with words he had never heard of. But apparently his body did. As Ren came at him with a slew of leg attacks and arms tucked at his sides, Davin began instictively blocking with his shins and forearms, finally finding an opportunity and thrusting out with a powerful two-fist strike to Ren's chest. This sent him staggering back, catching himself on time near the boundary behind him.

"Hurts a _lot_, doesn't it!" Davin smiled, not able to resist commenting on that little touch of irony.

Ren straightened himself out, his aura almost eliminating any recovery time needed, then promptly tugged his coat to straighten it out as well before coming at Davin full force. Evading the first ground kick meant to swipe his legs, Davin tumbled back with a short string of handsprings to the center of the circle.

"Hmm." Ren decided to change tactics.

Shifting from a leg-based offense to an arm-based offense, he came at Davin who blocked the first few punches with his forearms in quick, powerful movements. Picking up the speeds of his delivery and evading nearly all of Davin's blows, Ren was gaining the upper hand.

_Block, dodge, block, block, block block block, craaaaaaap-_

Davin grunted in anger as Ren broke his defensive maneuver and delivered a speed-enhanced flurry of aura-aided blows from his abdomen up to his chest, barely evading the final blow which easily would've shattered his collarbone. Davin staggered backwards dazed, but swiftly brought back into the fight by some internal force, condensed the mist of pain into the next command.

_Capoeira_.

'Again with the weird words.'

Confusion turned to elation when Ren came closer to resume the beat-down and suddenly Davin began to hop lightly from foot to foot, catching Ren by surprise by the speed of the sudden reverse leg sweep who was able to recover by escaping with a back handspring of his own.

Davin advanced, arms up as if he were going for arm strikes, but as Ren began to close in, expecting a series of punches from this newcomer's strange style, Davin feinted and redirected all his momentum into a spinning roundhouse kick which made swift contact with Ren's head, sending him to the floor.

For the first time in a long time.

The growing crowd outside the barrier was equally as astonished as the pair inside. Yang was the only one who had managed to put him to the floor during a certain food fight in recent years, but he preferred not to talk about that.

Getting up and re-engaging his opponent, Ren found himself in the air more than on the ground trying to evade the succession of fluid, low sweeping kicks. He finally found an opening when, after blocking another low kick using his semblance, struck downwards with his elbow, hardened by his aura and straining Davin's knee at the joint on contact.

As quickly as he could, Davin rolled his weight with a groan of pain and swept Ren's legs with his other leg, taking the opportunity to get up and away as Ren sprung back up with a pop-up.

They were back in the center of the circle, one fighter looking worse for wear, the other with minimal damage thanks to his well-rationed aura. Though Ren didn't have the best endurance in the world when it came to aura, having difficulty during matches with weapons or multiple opponents which he couldn't dispatch quickly enough, when it came to hand-to-hand combat Ren could go on all day. And Davin had now realized that.

'Ok, whatever that kid is on, I gotta get rid of that. I can't keep dodging his attacks forever,' Davin thought to himself while the pair began circling each other once more, just like in the beginning.

Though this time it was different. Davin's chest was tight, his arms and legs beat up and his knee screaming in pain...as if Ren had ensured to hit every-

_Pressure points._

'Of course!' Davin realized. If he were to regain the upper hand, it'd be by slowly disabling his opponent with adequate pressure in the right places...but how? No time to think, Ren had begun to close in again-

_Win Chun._

His body responded by relaxing and meeting Ren in the middle, trading blows back and forth with straight arm jabs and straight leg kicks in such a display of martial artistry that to the others outside the arena, it seemed almost beautiful. Articulate aura-enhanced speed against a honed instinct-driven defense, Davin was trowing out an equal amount of offensive and defensive maneuvers, neither opponent finding an opening into the other.

Finally, as instincts drove him on, Davin began to see the pressure points in his mind laid out over the lightning-fast form of Ren, and got to work.

_Parry, block, reach, grab._

He took Ren's arm and gripped beneath the bicep, hearing the faintest _crack_, swiftly blocking a heel-driven kick to do the same to the shoulder. _Crack_.

_Twist, spin, thrust, grab._

Quickly spinning around his opponent and dodging an elbow shot, he grabbed two more spots of weakness on Ren's opposite arm and side, each responding with a _crack_. And finally, after jabbing Ren's underarm, eliciting a cry of pain from the stoic, Davin reached back and grabbed his neck. _Crack_. He couldn't do much more, however, before being pummeled by two uppercuts to the abdomen, the second one, aided with aura, sending him flying backwards to the floor a few feet away. Still, the impact was weaker than he had expected. Perfect.

When Ren stood up, he immediately felt something was wrong. He didn't feel winded, but by instict took the opportunity to glance at his scroll while Davin was getting up a few feet away. He couldn't believe what he saw. Somehow, in the past few minutes his aura had gone from a healthy green to a dangerously low yellow, merely a sliver from red. He had always been a master of rationing his aura during hand-to-hand combat but somehow he now was almost bled dry of it. He needed to conserve his aura for healing only, but more importantly, he needed to end this now.

Davin knew his chance was coming as Ren checked his scroll, and this time he needed to take it fast. Noting two more pressure points on his legs, the inner commands riled his entire body into unified purpose as he charged his oppponent.

_Judo_.

Keeping himself low, he closed the space quickly.

'New guy isn't afraid, I'll give him that.' Ren thought to himself a moment before meeting the multiple hand strikes. It seemed he could gain the upper hand soon, catching one of Davin's arms as it flew a little off target. Which was exactly what Davin wanted.

With a surprising burst of speed, he took the already weakened arm of Ren, bending it to a near breaking point before putting a leg around the pained stoic and taking him to the ground for a second time in the match in a firm pin. Following two quick jabs to the diaphragm for a ground and pound, he was able to get one of the pressure points on Ren's leg before being kicked off.

Now Ren felt winded. His arm was barely recuperating as it should've with his aura, knowing that at any moment his levels would soon hit red. He would need to rely solely on his physicality using grappling techniques, a measure he used only as a last resort should he ever find himself in this situation. But that's where he excelled, that's where he was strongest. That was the reason why he hadn't lost a competitive match in years.

'Time to end this.' Both youths resolved in unison.

_**TO BE CONTINUED...**_

* * *

_**The Valean War**  
TPS (c) 2014_


	9. Vol 1-7: Sparring Match, Pt 2

_**Sparring Match, Pt. 2**  
-VII-_

* * *

The two opponents stood only a few feet from one another, having so far engaged in a match that had kept their audience riveted every second. But right now, it was just Ren and Davin in the circle.

Ren had always been a hunter at heart, not just of the beasts of Grimm, but also for truth and peace. This newcomer had the capability to endanger both if he had arrived to Beacon with malice, and Ren had to be sure. He was starting to believe him, but now this had become a battle for honor after noting the skill of this formidable opponent. Ren would see this through to the end, so now he waited...

Davin, to say the least, was in disbelief at how he had managed to survive this long. He didn't seem to have the gifts that many of these students had shown to possess, but was somehow managing to hold his own against a master of his trade.

He remembered so much but so little at the same time, but now was the time to end this with what he knew best. Fight.

With breathing techniques that he instinctively had started using midway through the brawl, he was maintaining his energy and keeping his body from shutting down due to the pain. He had a shot at winning. If he could only hold on a bit longer after receiving his next internal command...

_Jiu-Jitsu._

Davin launched himself at Ren, not expecting the stoic to voluntarily keep the fight on the ground, but knowing exactly what danger he was in as Ren expertly took him into what to Davin's instincts felt like a triangle choke. Whatever that was. Keeping himself braced against his opponent to keep from losing consciouness, Davin found himself at a disadvantage since Ren's leg had more strength than he could overcome thanks to his aura.

Wait.

The final pressure point was just within his reach. Risking the match, Davin quickly jabbed Ren in the kidneys to get him to loosen up just enough so he could reach with his other arm to his target, finally hearing a satisfactory _crack_.

"Agh!" Ren cried out, having felt that last adjustment to his anatomy and instantly feeling his muscles unlock.

Davin took the opportunity and reversed the positions, putting Ren to the brink of unconsciousness. With a final stretch of aura and gritting his teeth against the pain, Ren continually tried to give himself the upper hand.

Much to the dismay of the spectators, the ground techniques being used by the pair were picking up so much dust and debris that through the already opaque boundaries no one could tell who had the upper hand. Jaune and Pyrrha, standing closer together than either of them realized, could tell the upper hand had quickly switched a few more times before one of the two finally had the other pinned, a leg around the other's neck, pulling what seemed to be a swollen arm back at a dangerous angle.

But seemingly moments before everyone thought the battle would end, the dust barriers pulsed red and came down.

The match was a draw.

Before the dust could settle, both figures quickly rolled away from each other and stood up, exiting the circle together. Ren looked at Davin and nodded his head.

They both looked terrible, each had their fair shares of cuts and bruises, but each met the oncoming groups of teams RWBY and JNPR with grins on their faces, the other students now dissipating to get to their next classes.

"Holy cow! That was incredible! And crazy!" Ruby was ecstatic as they approached the two. "First Ren was like _waaaah!_ then Davin was like _yaaaah!_ and you guys were like _wham! pow! bam!_" She was going on and making ninja moves emphasizing every word.

"Oookay there, Rubes, I think these guys need some rest! That looked like...fun." Yang was impressed, to say the least, but not to be undone..."Oi, now you REALLY look pretty beat up, stranger!" She grinned with a wink at Davin.

"HAH. So you got jokes, huh?" He laughed as he punched her shoulder in jest. "But memory or no, I'm pretty sure I just got the beat-down of a lifetime." They all laughed.

"You are a worthy opponent," Ren replied, holding out his hand, "it was an honor. I've never seen that skill level in someone our age, and I don't think I had ever even seen some of the techniques you used in there before. The match was yours."

"But didn't you hear?" Davin said as he shook his hand, careful not to cause any undue pain to the stoic's swollen arm, "the match ended in a draw!" He smiled knowingly at the other, who returned the smile as well.

Not so much could be said for the girl behind Ren.

"Uhh...Nora?" Jaune's meek interjection brought everyone's attention to the girl. And for the first time that Davin- and probably any of the rest- could remember, she wasn't smiling. And she held Magnihild in her white-knuckled grip.

Taking a step back, Davin considered running again, as he was pretty sure he didn't have it in him for a third fight that day, especially against an angry young woman with a hammer that size.

Knowing how to diffuse the situation, Ren turned to her to get her attention away from the object of her not-so-cheerful intentions.

"Nora, I'm fine. See? All in one piece." He held up his arms for a hug.

"Are you sure? Cuz I'll break his legs!"

"Wha-!"

"Yes, I'm sure." He reassured her with a warm smile, to which her whole face lit up again as usual and she quickly jumped on him to return the hug. During which, however, her face momentarily darkened again for just a bit to give Davin the universal two-fingered 'I'm watching you' sign which only he could see.

"Uh. Nora. I don't think I can handle a sloth-hug right now..."

"Oh! Sorryyy!~" Nora jumped down, cheerful as ever.

Not wanting to leave a bad impression, Davin used the only bargaining chip he had on the girl.

"Hey Nora, I'm really sorry! Look, lemme make it up to you two..." Ren and Nora turned with curiosity to the incoming proposal, the other six watching as well.

"Let's see...how about..." He hoped his instincts were right on this one, "Pancakes?"

The look on her face told him that he had hit the nail on the head.

"REALLY? That would be AWESOME!" She exclaimed, a living definition of mirth. "Ren, I like that one! Can we keep him?~"

"If he says so..."

"YAY!~" They both then turned to the rest of their team to tend to Ren's injuries.

"Good save, newbie!" Yang chimed as she walked over to him chuckling, the other three girls behind her, "you are now permanently on her good side!"

"I guess so, though all in all I don't think any of this experience helped jog my memory much."

"Oh come on, with moves like those you'll fit in just fine while you wait to remember! I think even Blakey here just developed a combat crush on you hehe~"

Blake looked away blushing, pretending she hadn't heard anything.

"It's like you knew what his moves were gonna be before _he_ did, ya know?"

Davin was flattered but knew better than to take _that_ kind of credit. He replied with a beaming smile, "Not at all! It's just like my dad used to say, 'It's not about knowing your opponent, it's about knowing yourself'."

He froze.

He had just remembered something and the other girls had heard it, even team JNPR catching on that something had just happened due to the sudden silence.

"HAH. Look at that!" Yang continued, all smiles as she put her hand on Davin's shoulder, "looks like the fight jogged your memory after all!"

"Actually..." Davin was reflecting on the source of his discovery, a sheepish smile growing on him, "I think the thanks for that one goes to you."

Taken aback at the unexpected gratitude, Yang blushed a soft pink and stepped back with a shy smile, hand scratching the back of her neck.

"Um...you're welcome!"

"Awwww..." Ruby cooed, relishing in the moment that her sister was the one to be caught off-guard for once. Davin had to admit, the sight of that was absolutely adorable.

"Well Davin, that just leaves us one thing," Jaune spoke up, "we're gonna have to get you to the headmaster to figure out what you can do from this point. Hopefully we can explain all this to him."

"No need."

A voice by the spectator's area behind a nearby sparring circle caught everyone's attention as they all turned to look for where it had come from. Their search came to rest on a middle-aged man not too far from the sparring circle from which Davin and Ren had just exited.

He had white hair though the rest of his features seemed relatively youthful, and brown eyes taking in the scene behind a shaded pair of spectacles. He wore a black suit with a dark green scarf decorated with a small emblem, and though he stood tall, he carried a cane in one hand. And a cup of coffee in the other.

Next to him stood a middle-aged woman with blonde hair tied back in a bun and green eyes, wearing a white blouse under a black business skirt, all tied together by a tattered black cape that flowed behind her. She was finishing entering a few notes into her tablet.

The man took a sip of coffee. As if on cue, the woman then began to speak.

"Excellent match, students. It has certainly been a while since we had a sparring session without any weapons. That was quite interesting...and dangerous. Being that the match was hand-to-hand and begun without prior input, the dust barrier could have misread your aura levels, throwing off the impact meters and allowing someone to be gravely injured, or _worse_, by a fatal blow." The students looked down, feeling guilty that it had happened.

She paused before setting her sight on Davin and continued, "Which brings me to you, Mr..."

"Rosfield. Davin Rosfield."

"...Mr. Rosfield." More notes in the tablet. "You do not seem to be in the student manifest. We will get to that in a bit."

Jaune visibly shuddered.

"My name is Glynda Goodwitch, and I must give you a particular commendation for your match, not only due to your mastery over several advanced techniques, but also being the case that at no moment did you use the assistance of your aura. Not even any manifestation of it, really."

At the last statement, every student -except Jaune- looked over at Davin agape in utter shock.

"Whoaaaa..." Ruby muttered under her breath.

"Are you _crazy!?_" Weiss hissed, "Ren could've killed you in there!"

All Davin could do was shrug his shoulders then turn back to the woman.

"Ms. Goodwitch, I appreciate the commendation but would also like to apologize for my ignorant behavior. It wasn't my intention to put anyone in harm's way."

"Well, that's something you'll have to take up with the headmaster, I suppose." She mused, eyeing her tablet once more.

"Which is why I'm taking the liberty to apologize now."

She looked up at the young man. "Thank you, but I am not the headmaster, Mr. Rosfield."

"I know." Davin replied, then looking over to the older man, continued, "_He_ is."

The man took another sip of coffee, the smallest of grins turning up a corner of his lip.

"I don't believe you are a student at this academy, Mr. Rosfield." The man said cooly.

"I am not, sir."

"How unfortunate."

"I-"

"How would you like to _be_ one?"

A brief pause...everyone had turned to Davin, who had just received such a prestigious and rare offer, especially being that it was so late into the year. A few hours before, Davin would have asked for time to consider, maybe even rejecting the offer downright. But now, after recalling a piece of his past, things were different.

He felt as though there was a part of himself he needed to learn about there before moving on to any another place. Things in that strange place still seemed foreign to him, but had now spawned a purpose...a feeling that he was supposed to be _there_, now. And as another blurry memory crept into mind, he found himself agreeing to the saying whole-heartedly.

"I accept."

The other students applauded his decision, welcoming Davin to Beacon. 'After all...' Davin thought to himself, echoing his newly found saying,

'There's a reason why I was found here. There's a reason for everything.'

* * *

_**The Valean War**  
TPS (c) 2014_


	10. Vol 1-8: The Forge, Pt 1

_**The Forge, Pt. 1**  
-VIII-_

* * *

Yang had to admit, she was pleasantly surprised by the way things were going today.

She wouldn't want to think she was _impressed_ by the young man who had just been offered entrance into Beacon, she didn't know him well enough to give him that kind of compliment just yet. But pleasantly surprised, yes.

And not just because his hand-to-hand combat was unlike anything she had ever seen before, which really was something. She had even noticed Blake practically drooling at the progress of the match - ninja stuff was kinda her thing. Even down to the naughty book she denied owning.

Sure, Davin had also come close to beating _Ren_, one of the best strikers Yang knew, but what really piqued her interest was that he could match her wit as well as her physicality. She had always been used to pummeling other guys into submission psychologically, but this newbie was pretty cool about it, countering her advances at every instance. She liked that.

Not that it made her any less upset at the moment, however.

She had lost to a newb, but Yang decided she'd keep testing him out to get to know who he was as the current conversation continued around her.

* * *

"We are pleased with your acceptance," the silver-haired man stated, "My name is Ozpin. And I'm sure you will do well here. After all, you nearly bested one of our best hand-to-hand fighters without the use of your aura."

"A pleasure to meet you, and thank you sir," Davin responded, and unable to resist the urge, adding, "and out of curiosity, may I ask how much of it you saw?"

"Well, as the substitute teacher today..." Another sip of coffee as his gaze shifted briefly to Yang and back to Davin, "I arrived shortly before your bout with Miss Xiao Long, actually. Quite an interesting match," he added with a small smirk.

"But in any case, I'm sure you and your opponent are needing some medical attention. Miss Goodwitch will be sure to attend to that, and afterwards you may go to the forge to pick out armor and a weapon if you have none on hand," Looking over to Ruby, he added, "Would you care to accompany him, Miss Rose?"

Ruby was smiling in excitement. "I'd love to!"

"Excellent, and Mr. Rosfield..." Ozpin was looking at Davin again, "You may attend classes with team RWBY for the rest of the day. But I'd like to have a word with you in my office after school to discuss temporary dorm placement and team assignment."

"Not a problem, sir."

Ozpin was hard to read, but Davin couldn't help feeling there was something left unsaid. At least he might find out later.

"Excellent. I now must take leave as I have a few matters to attend to. Miss Goodwitch?" He nodded to his colleague as he turned to leave.

"Yes, the three of you may follow me," she stated to Ren, Davin and Ruby, "and the rest of you may be dismissed."

The students each waved and smiled at the trio as they left for their next class as Ruby, Ren and Davin followed behind Ms. Goodwitch. Ren, however, decided to lag behind to join Davin.

"So," he began in a low tone, "you really have no idea what aura is, do you."

"Not a clue."

A few feet ahead, an eyebrow raised behind rectangular spectacles. More notes in the tablet.

* * *

"So where'd you find that guy anyway?" Yang asked her fellow blonde as they made their way to the next class, still somewhat peeved.

"Uh... I met him outside of school..." He replied slowly. She rolled her eyes at the lack of information.

The group of young women followed Jaune until finally reaching their next class, surprised to find a note on the locked door.

"Class is cancelled... again," Blake stated flatly as she read the note.

"My goodness!" Weiss began with a fit, "That is an unacceptable way to run a classroom, how are we supposed to learn effectively with such a haphazard schedule!?"

"Eesh, cool it down, _Ice Princess!_" Yang called her attention with the nickname, "It's only a lab to support Miss Goodwitch's main Dust 101 course! It's not like it's even supposed to be an everyday thing, y'know?"

"But _still_..." The Princess crossed her arms with a huff.

"It's _Heiress, _actually," Blake corrected, "and from what I've heard, Peach often has to stay at home to care for her husband, Mario... he was badly injured in a Faunus labor accident..." It was the kind of thing the mysterious girl would remember.

"Peach and Mario?~" Nora quipped with glee, "They sound like such a cute couple!~"

"Wait... Professor Peach is married?" Jaune asked in surprise.

"You really _would_ be the kind of guy to miss the wedding ring on her finger for a few months, eh Jaune?" Yang replied in response with a grin, "I feel so _sorry_ for the girl who falls for you!"

Pyrrha looked down to hide her blush.

"You okay, Pyr?" Jaune worriedly asked his partner, placing his hand on her bare shoulder which only made her blush even more. Everyone seemed to understand the Spartan's feelings except for him.

"Y-Yes, I'm fine Jaune..." She looked up, only barely containing her blush, "I guess its just a little hot today, that's all..."

"Oh she's _hot_ alright~" Yang giggled at the pair as Pyrrha blushed crimson at the comment.

"_Yang!_" Blake sternly chided her partner.

"Yea!" Jaune added as well, standing up for his partner, "I'll have you know, Xiao Long, that I just so happen to feel the same way as Pyrrha does!..." The girls, along with Pyrrha herself, turned to look at the knight in confusion as he continued with righteous and compassionate indignation.

"Today _is_ pretty hot!"

The five girls mentally facepalmed at his obliviousness.

"Let's just go back to the arena to practice," Blake advised curtly.

At the arena, each student scanned their scrolls on the input console, the machine picking out Jaune and Pyrrha to spar first. He groaned as his partner grinned, elated with the opportunity to continue training with her leader.

"Oho, this should be fun!" The brawler grinned in anticipation, not knowing about the training sessions that Jaune had been receiving from his opponent for weeks.

Entering the larger central match grounds, the two readied themselves for combat as the other four girls watched from outside the boundary. The muted beep signaled the beginning of the match, and within the first five seconds the girls saw Jaune put to the ground.

He got up and looked over at the giggling group.

"Oh, come on! Not helping!"

"Use your aura, Jaune," the redhead advised sweetly, "it'll help."

"I'm _trying_..." He replied in frustration.

Rushing the Spartan, he found himself eating dirt time and time again but wasn't about to give up. That was a quality about the knight that Pyrrha found especially endearing.

This time, however, she flung Akoúo at Crocea Mors from a distance, launching Jaune's shield into the artificial tree line in the arena. He deadpanned at his laughing partner.

"Oh, come on!"

Running into the tree line to get his shield, Pyrrha aimed Milo with care, launching it several yards into the trees. The sound of metal digging itself into wood rang out.

_TWANNNG._

"Come onnn!"

"So-rry!" The giggling Spartan called out in response, sure she had ended the match.

She was already making her way to the tree line to pull him out when she saw him enexpectedly emerge from the trees, Milo in hand.

"Well that's impressive, you pulled it out on your own this time!"

"It's just a spear, Pyrrha," the knight calmly replied, tossing the weapon back to her. But remembering his initial difficulties with her weapon, she mentally noted the achievement as progress.

Her surprise only grew as the blonde leader began using his sword much more, parrying and countering her attacks with greater ease.

"Does he watch her fight or something?" Blake thought out loud as she watched the duo go back and forth longer than she could remember them having done previously, "it's like he knows her combinations already..."

"Maybe he's actually improv-" The heiress began but cut herself off, shaking her head in cold sobering realization of what she was about to say.

"EUH! What am I thinking! I agree, Blake. He must be studying her style."

The amused raven-haired girl merely glanced at her snowy teammate with a smirk and raised brow as the Spartan launched a counter-attack in the arena.

Jumping over a low slash and landing on his back next to Pyrrha, Jaune used his recovered shield to jam it into the back of her knees, her legs buckling and sending her to the ground for the first time. In one swift movement, he was back up and standing over her triumphantly in a brief moment of victory.

He offered her a hand to pick her up, the Spartan laughing warmly in pride for her leader as she took it from the floor. The same feeling of sparks ran between the two as Pyrrha's gaze lingered on his just a little longer.

"Not bad, Jaune!" he smiled at her compliment, "Buuut..."

He raised an eyebrow, "But what?"

Taking a firm hold of his hand, the spartan quickly swung her outstretched legs across the floor, swiping his own out from under him. And like a gymnast, she completed the swinging arc to land herself on top of him in a straddling position, Milo at his neck.

"Owww... come _on_..."

She grinned mischievously at the downed leader, "Your stance is _still_ all wrong. You need to be wider and lower to the ground."

Jaune grinned back at his victorious opponent, but his response was cut off by a few wolf-whistles at the end of the arena as both students turned to the grinning onlookers. Realizing the compromising position they were in, they quickly stood up, each blushing profusely as they walked back to the entry.

"Did I hear something about being wide and low to the ground?~" the grinning brawler asked as they regrouped in front of the input console, "because I'm pretty sure you both were as down and dirty as they get!~ RAWR!" She snarled adorably as she emulated a large cat, both Jaune and Pyrrha blushing equal shades of deep red.

"You and your puma impressions, Yang," Blake muttered as she sunk her face into her hand. Blake would know the impression... she _was_ a cat-faunus, after all.

Nora was about to run the combatant-choosing algorithm on the input console again before Pyrrha held her hand back.

"You know what? I don't think I've had the pleasure of sparring against Yang, actually."

"You sure, Pyrrha?" The hammer-wielder asked innocently, "you just finished a match."

"Oh I think I'll be fine."

"Whatever you say, Knight-Lover!" Yang teased as she engaged Ember Celica.

The match was long and grueling, the entire arena lighting up in aura and dustpowder as the two girls duked it out in close combat. Though the other girls were deeply amused, it scared Jaune senseless.

Why would Pyrrha spar again so soon?

Finally ending the match in a draw, each girl nodded to her opponent's prowess as they all readied themselves to get to their next class.

"Seriously, why would Pyrrha have done that?" Jaune asked the incredulous Heiress as the group made their way out of the arena, "She could've gotten hurt!"

"It's times like these that you worry me, Arc," Weiss responded with a straight-faced expression, shaking her head at his denseness, "you really do."

* * *

At about that time, Davin and Ren emerged from the infirmary and waved goodbye to each other as they parted ways. Ren looked much better once his aura had recharged, and Davin didn't look too bad, only a few visible bandages here and there. He had kindly requested only to have his minor injuries treated as his instinct told him that he had suffered no major injuries and to avoid any in-depth examination, as he felt oddly uncomfortable with being scanned by any equipment with the word 'aura' in the name.

Thankfully, they had some clothes in there too. He picked out a purple plaid flannel shirt patterned with crossing gold and black lines and long sleeves which he always wore rolled up, black jeans and kept his Converse. He felt a deep attachment to those, buffing them out quickly before leaving the room.

Ruby caught his attention as he left the infirmary and parted from Ren, she had been waiting for him on the other side of the threshold of the exit.

"Hey, new guy! How are you feeling?"

Turning his attention to her, he smiled. "Better! But try asking me again tomorrow, I'll probably need Ozpin's cane since I'll be walking like an old man." They both chuckled.

"And you can call me Davin... or Vin if you'd like..." feeling the short version of his name come out as easily as if it were his childhood nickname, "getting called 'new guy' makes me feel like I stand out or have something to prove. I'd rather just blend in and learn what I can..." he admitted while looking down sheepishly.

"I know what you mean... I mean, who wants to be the bee's knees, right?"

He looked up to her and smiled as they walked the hall together.

"Haha, right. Hey... where are we going again?" Davin wondered.

"I dunno, I was following _you_."

"Um... Ozpin called it 'The Forge'? Do you think there might be a directory? Is it near a food court? Maybe some sort of recognizable landmark?"

"Hah! No silly, I'm kidding! I _know_ where it is, it's one of my favorite places in the whole school!" Ruby said chuckling.

"Wait. So it's an actual _forge_?"

"Yep."

"And you have a _forge_, in the _school_."

"Yep."

He really needed to get used to how literal this place was with the names. Nevertheless, he couldn't help smiling at how normal it all seemed to the girl.

"And 'one of your favorite places', huh? You must be into weapons and stuff."

She looked down, smiling shyly, "Well... I'm kind of a dork when it comes to weapons..." she paused awkwardly, "So... I got this thing."

Davin froze as he saw her quickly reach behind herself and pull out a device which quickly unfolded to reveal a crescent-shape blade that she set to rest the ground as the weapon came to full length. He could tell it was sharp because it actually went _into_ the floor, dislodging a few rocks of the concrete.

"Whoa! That's a scythe!"

"It is also a customizable, high impact velocity sniper rifle."

"So it's-"

"It is also a gun."

"Ah."

She picked up her weapon and both resumed walking, Ruby holding it over her shoulder as if it were actually a rifle. After another minute or two, Davin couldn't resist commenting about it.

"I'm not gonna lie, I didn't imagine you to be a... _scy-fle _wielding girl. You handle it as if it was air, it must be really light."

"Haha, you mean Crescent Rose? Yea she's pretty light..." a glint in her eye appeared as she was struck with an idea and smiled. "Hey, I really don't do this much, but... you wanna try her?"

She honestly expected him to refuse. After all, no other student at Signal had dared to try the highly dangerous scythe, especially after hearing all the stories of accidental dismemberment. The terrible, terrible stories. Poor kids.

"Sure."

Her smile broadened at his quick answer. "Here ya go! Just be careful!"

He took it in his hands. It _was_ light. But instead of giving it back, having seen how she held it, he took a firm grip with both hands, spinning it above and around him with impressive speed and quickly stopping the blade less than an inch from the wall. He smiled at his successful maneuver.

"Whoa! Have you ever handled a scythe before?" Ruby was surprised at how easily Davin had picked up on handling Crescent Rose.

"Um...no...not that I recall." He gave Crescent Rose back to its owner. "But that thing is AWESOME! Thanks, Ruby!"

"No problem!" She liked that he wasn't afraid to try it.

After a short while, they finally reached their destination.

"Here we are! Forge sweet forge!"

It was a small L-shaped building by one of the spires, so unassuming that Davin easily would've passed it had he not had a guide. The sound of periodic bangs of metal drifted out from behind the high arched doorway. They both stepped in.

* * *

_**The Valean War**  
TPS (c) 2014_


	11. Vol 1-9: The Forge, Pt 2

_**The Forge, Pt. 2**  
-IX-_

* * *

The Forge was certainly an interesting place.

Having entered through the long end, it seemed like the walls went on forever, one side covered with armor and the other, weapons.

"Wow."

"I know, right!?" Ruby must've been here a million times but still got ecstatic upon entering. "Do you know what kind of armor you'd like?"

"Mmm, haven't really thought about it yet..." Davin drifted off as he looked over all the weapons on the opposite wall.

This place had everything - bows, swords, maces, shields, spears - and the further in he went, the more exotic the weapons seemed... he saw crossbows, tridents, halberds... and a scythe.

He looked at Ruby with a smile as he began to reach for the scythe, her whole face brightening in expectation of his weapon choice. But as he was about to grab it, he suddenly snapped back his hand and turned to Ruby with a mischievous grin.

"Meh. Nah."

"Whaaaaaat?" She was slightly dissapointed, but still smiling as she realized Davin was joking with her.

"I mean, I like it alot, but it doesn't feel like me. Besides, I think you have the cool scythe department covered." He winked at her with a grin.

"Fine! Fair enough." She crossed her arms and pouted which made Davin laugh at how cute she was.

He kept searching as they passed a bend in the building, the corner of the L-shape, and he noticed the short end of the building was occupied by a massive forge surrounded by pieces of armor and weapons in various states of damage on a long counter which cut off public access to that area. Behind the counter was a lone blacksmith, banging away at a chest plate to take out it's dents. Davin recalled that piece of armor as having belonged to an unfortunate fox Faunus who was at the receiving end of a mace strike...

The blacksmith was focused on the task, a black cap covering his face with its lip since he was looking down in concentration. Other than that, he wore a white t-shirt under a heavy black apron as he worked. It seemed like a simple outfit, which is why it struck Davin as strange when he saw the stylish yellow goggles perched on said hat.

"Hi there! I haven't seen you before, are you new here?" Ruby called out to the man. No answer, as he went on banging the armor, seeming not to hear her.

"I guess he's really busy..."

As Davin returned to eyeing the weapons, a dusty old box on the floor near the corner of the building caught his eye, and he went over to pick it up. It was about the length of his hand and forearm.

"What is it?" Ruby asked in curiosity.

"Not sure..."

Upon opening it, Davin saw a single cylindrical piece of metal sitting inside. It was about two inches wide and chrome in color, decorated with black grooves and golden hand grips on the side and with a hole at the end of it. It was strange, too long to be a baton but too short to be a bow-staff. But it fit perfectly in Davin's hands.

"Heh. Interesting weapon choice! I see you found Starkillers there."

The blacksmith had called out from behind the counter, head still down and working on the task at hand.

"Yea," Davin replied, he and Ruby still studying it with curiosity. "Anything you can tell us about it?"

Without looking up, the blacksmith continued, "Well Starkillers right there is powered by a dual dust crystal system, generating a controlled beam of energy which can cut through almost anything, except dust-infused metal, of course. Very dangerous. Very fun!"

"How does it activate?" Asked an increasingly curious Ruby.

"See that red button on the side? Push it and slide it down a bit... and oh!" He added quickly as Davin was about to follow his instructions, interrupting the action, "make SURE that the hole at the end is pointing _away_ from you when you do."

Heeding his advice, Davin did what he was told. He was immediately glad he did. A shining light expanded out of the hole as a thick beam of a slightly lesser width than its handle emerged with a hum. It gave off a grayish glow, stretching out to about a meter in length before stopping.

"Whoaaaaa..." Ruby let out in awe.

"I know," Davin replied, entranced by the light, "it's like a saber... but of _light._"

He held his hand up to the beam of light.

"Careful," The blacksmith warned with his head still down, as if he were sensing the new student's intentions.

Lowering his hand, Davin began to swing it around, the beam giving off a low hum as he did which would rise in pitch the faster he moved it.

_hummmmmmmmmmmmmhmmmmmhmmhmmmmmm_

As Davin played with it, both he and Ruby thought it to be harmless... until Davin decided to 'pretend stab' a chest plate that was lying on the floor. The beam went through the thick, hardened metal like butter, even melting the surrounding metal on the plate.

"WHOA!" Davin and Ruby exclaimed at the same time, Davin pulling out the beam to see the damage it had done.

"Yep. They classify it as a blade for a reason," The blacksmith continued working, seemingly unimpressed by the blade he worked across from everyday.

"This is incredible!" Davin exclaimed as he dragged the tip of the blade across the ground, leaving a singed trail on the dirt and trowing up a few sparks.

"Why have I never seen any of these before?" Ruby asked quizically.

"For a few reasons." The blacksmith continued at his work, the pair of students having stopped minding it minutes ago. "First, the crystals necessary to build it are rare, expensive, and difficult to cut to size. Second, even when the crystal is fashioned, building the dang contraption is a real pain. If you were to carry that out today and break it, there'd be nothing that I nor just about anyone else could do to help you. But I hear it's almost impossible to break. And third, do you _see_ the type of damage it can do? One wrong move and _SLASH_, there goes your arm. I swear that thing is worse than a scythe..."

Ruby couldn't help giggling at that last remark. Davin looked at the device and how it was so craftfully made... it was an elegant weapon. Perhaps from a more civilized time.

He looked back up at the blacksmith suddenly amused, Ruby's giggling had now infected him too. "So," he said in the direction of the still-working Blacksmith, head still down, "I guess you're kind of a nerd when it comes to these things, aren't ya?"

Stopping his work, the Blacksmith merely held out his hand in correction. "Upupupupup! _Intellectual_, okay? Thank you."

Ruby immediately stopped laughing, her silver eyes narrowed, "Wait a minute..."

She stomped over to the blacksmith who remained oblivious to her intentions and upon reaching him she immediately reached up and yanked off his cap before he could react, revealing a head of neon blue hair.

"Neptune!?"

"Ruby!?"

"...DAVIN!" Davin couldn't help it. He had to see why Nora found it so addicting. The two just looked over at him blinking.

Then the three erupted into laughter.

"What are you _doing_ here!?" Ruby finally asked after regaining control over herself.

"Well I was gonna make it a surprise..." the blue-haired student began, wiping sweat off his brow from work and laughter, "I had been meaning to transfer from Haven for a while, but after the dance two days ago, I decided to make it official! I've been here since yesterday!"

"I like your commitment," Ruby stated matter-of-factly. Davin was clearly missing something there.

"Heh, I guess so..." he smiled sheepishly as he blushed, scratching the back of his head. Wanting to change the subject, he directed himself to Davin.

"So yea, as I was saying, those weapons are rare and dangerous, which is why there are almost none in existence."

"So why would there be one laying here collecting dust in a _school_?"

"Hmm," Neptune put a hand to his chin in thought, "I remember being told by the last guy here that the blade was _made_ here by an old teacher... a man by the name of Qrow, I think."

"That's my uncle!" Ruby exclaimed in surprise. "I thought he was only into blades like for scythes, I didn't know he designed weapons like _those_..." she mentioned, looking at Starkillers with a new-found reverence.

"Well then, it's decided. I'll take it."

Davin was sure of it. Surely he had found this for a reason.

"What! are you sure!?" Neptune replied, losing his general air of coolness, "I heard the last guy to own it was like a Master Professor or something and killed himself with it the next day in practice!"

"Wouldn't be first time he's handled a dangerous weapon like that," Ruby looked at Davin with a knowing smile which he also reciprocated.

"Ok then, I guess it's yours for the taking. I'll make sure to report it in the manifest. Ah, and also, being that it's dust-powered, it makes it extremely useful against dust attacks. Might wanna practice for that. Just so you know."

"Cool. One more question," Davin asked, burrows furrowed in curiosity, "why is it called Starkiller_s_? The name is plural. Does it come with another piece?"

Neptune grinned. "I thought you'd never ask."

Coming out from behind the counter, he guided the two students to the crux of the building where they would have the most space.

"Okay, Davin, right? I want you to hold out the handle in front of you horizontally."

He obliged Neptune's request.

"Good, now push the button down, except instead of sliding it, _twist_ the bottom half of the handle."

Upon doing so, a small _click_ indicated that another hole had opened on the bottom of the handle. Davin's excitement began to grow from within.

"Now slide the button down."

No sooner than he had done so, a second beam of light emerged from the other end of the handle along with the first one, effectively turning the weapon into a _very_ deadly bow-staff.

"I... am impressed."

"How funny, you think that's all? Just wait, there's more. Now hold down the button and twist the bottom half around all the way."

Davin smiled as he did so, and with another small _click_, now held a pair of light-blades in his hands. Starkillers. He couldn't take it anymore.

"Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh! This thing is TOO FRIGGIN AWESUMMM!"

Ruby was able to interject between her fit of laughter, "Now you're starting to sound just like _me!_"

Davin found that upon turning off the blade on the main handle, the other saber shut down as well. He reconnected them and placed it in the box.

"Great. How about some armor?"

"Well," Neptune began, "I think I might have something you'll like. I had finished working on it but decided to drop it since I couldn't find a way to stow my weapon with it," He pointed over to what looked like a full-length energy baton, "And it kinda cramps my style."

"Hmm, point taken."

"But it's based on mecha-shift technology, and seeing that you've got some _nice_ shoes, seriously," he looked down at Davin's shoes with appreciation of the style, "I think you'd like the boots they come with."

He went back to the counter, and bending over, came back up with a pair of boots and what looked like a thick harness. Each were made with segmented sections of a dark gray- almost black- type of metal, overlapping slightly like scales. The harness was simply three belts of the same medal bound by a fist-sized golden medallion on the front.

"Okay, here you go. The harness goes on first, then the boots. Once you've done so, twist the medallion to your left."

Davin put on the items, the harness coming on from the top, one belt wrapped around his midsection and two wrapped over his shoulders. Boots came on next, each one being way too large for his frame and feet, but nevertheless twisted the medallion as told. Upon doing so, the medallion snapped back to its original position and then it and the boots whirred to life, tightening the straps and bands until both straps and boots were at a snug fit.

"Pretty cool huh?"

It _was_. He was able to walk around freely due to the segmented nature of the boots, keeping his full range of motion in his feet.

"Now here's the best part. When you're ready, _push_ the medallion."

The moment Davin did so, the items whirred to life again. His boots extended up to his knees, solidifying on the front to form sturdy dark-grey shin-guards with gold linings and the tops expanding up into gold diamond shaped knee-guards ending in a spike.

Then the spaces between his harness belts closed and solidified over his chest and shoulders into the hardened dark-gray metal of the rest of his armor except with gold linings.

He thought that was it, but then two cuffs sprouted across his chest around the medallion, each only half formed. Instinctively placing both forearms into the cuffs, they finished forming around his arms and disconnected, solidifying into the same dark-grey metal with gold lining.

Finally the belt around his midsection came to life, sprouting segment after segment of a lustrous purple metal until it reached his waist, sprouting a grey segment of metal which acted as a belt. That belt in turn sprouted two more sets of the dark-grey metal as flaps, one covering the front of his hip and one covering behind.

"Neptune! That's AMAZING!" Ruby gasped.

"I know. I'm awesome. Push the medallion when you're done," Neptune mused as he looked at his own work while guiding Davin to a small mirror. The word _samurai_ drifted around Davin's mind as he contemplated the finished product. As he pushed the medallion again, the items transformed into their original forms in seconds.

"Wow, man. You sure you wanna let me keep it?"

"Yea, it looks better on you than it does me. And fortunately for you, this metal is dust-infused so you wont have to worry about Starkillers killing _you _that much. The only problem is... where to put the weapon," He added the last part frowning.

Eyeing a quiver with a single strap on the counter, Davin had an idea.

"You mind me using that quiver?"

"Go right ahead."

A minute later, Davin emerged from behind the counter. Having refastened the leather belt atound the quiver, he now wore it as a belt slung around his waist, quiver on the side of his hip, refastened as a sheath. Starkillers fit perfectly inside. As he re-engaged the armor, he was pleased to find that Starkillers stuck out from between the flaps for easy access.

"Boom."

Davin held out his arms, but noticed the purple metal.

"Purple?"

"Hah yea I was gonna point that out, the metal takes on the properties of the wearer's aura. Mine is neon blue-" he pointed to his hair, "and yours is kinda purple. Tough break." He started to laugh.

Davin looked confused. "I dunno if it's my _aura_..."

"Oh, come on, you telling me you've never seen the color of your aura before?" Neptune asked incredulously.

"Um... no..."

"Well," Ruby interjected, "if I didn't know any better, I'd say it was. You seem to like the color a lot."

"Yea, she makes a good point. You _chose_ that shirt, bro. Everything happens for a reason."

Davin tensed upon hearing that last comment. At that moment, it did strike him as odd that this 'mind reading' metal would happen to choose his favorite color. Maybe they had a point...

"Okay, fair enough," Davin replied with a smile, "I guess I'll take it as-is."

"Oh, and one more thing," Neptune added, a look of plea forming in his eyes, "_Please_ don't tell anyone about me yet. I'd like to do it at my own time."

Davin and Ruby looked at each other for a moment and back to Neptune.

"Sure."

And with a final wave, the two students left the Forge.

* * *

_**The Valean War**  
TPS (c) 2014_


	12. Vol 1-10: The First Day

_**The First Day**  
-X-_

* * *

Ruby was having a good time.

She began to reminisce about her early days at Beacon while walking down the hallway, her new friend beside her practically fangirling over his new equipment. All she had wanted when she got to the academy was to meet new people and enjoy becoming a Huntress, and in the few months of her attendance she was managing to do both. She was making the kind of friends that stick with you for a long time.

Looking over at her newest friend, Vin, Ruby now understood why her sister had taken a liking to him. He was funny, and was as quick with words as he was on the field, and if he wasn't even using his aura against Ren, using his natural speed to evade dangerous attacks and delivering several of his own, who knows what he'd be capable of if he did use it?

'Even if he glows purple while he does...' She thought to herself chuckling.

Truth be told, he gave her the same feeling of untapped potential as Jaune did, and she found herself hoping that the blonde knight would come around in the same way. But he and Vin were both new to this, and hopefully with time they'd become two of the greats.

* * *

She started laughing again as Vin was practicing pulling out Starkillers like a samurai sword.

"Having fun, Vin?"

"Yep! Check it out, I'm like a ninja!"

He did a few exaggerated moves with Starkillers, both of them laughing at his antics as he added his own sound effects to his movements. He felt like he could be himself around the younger girl without having to be serious all the time, something he was enjoying very much.

Still, he now wanted to get something off his chest, and as much as he enjoyed joking with Ruby, he felt like he could talk to her as well.

Now taking a more serious tone, he continued, "You know, I'll admit that this is turning out to be pretty interesting, I never would've thought of myself as someone who would belong in this kind of place..."

"Yea, it can be like that sometimes, but you never know where you'll do great unless you try it, you know?"

"True... but don't you think there's a chance that someone could be wrong, that they think it'll work out when really they don't belong?"

"Nope!"

"But there _has_to be a chance they're wrong, right?"

"Nope!"

Ruby was smiling as she answered, but she could tell something was on his mind.

"You're thinking about your memory, aren't you?"

He nodded.

"What if I'm not supposed to be here, Ruby? I don't_ feel _likea fighter, and I'm not even sure what I'm fighting _against_. What if I do something wrong and put people in harm's way?"

"Well that's why you're in a school. To train yourself so that it never happens." She smiled warmly at him, hoping to lift his spirits.

"Besides, don't you think it's _interesting_that for a guy who can't remember practically anything about himself except for his name and how to fight like a war hero, the _first_ place you find yourself when you wake up is at a combat school?"

Davin seemed to think something over for a moment.

"Hmm... meh, I bet you're pretty good too! You seem pretty young compared to everyone else here so I'm thinking you got moved ahead a year or two. Just imagine how good you'll be when you've actually grown up!" He stuck his tongue out at her.

"Heeey! I'm pretty grown up enough already! I drink _milk!_"

"Oh _whatever_." He punched her in the shoulder.

When she punched him back, he caught her arm in its recoil and pulled her in for a noogie.

"Grk! Hey! No fair!" She mumbled through the headlock, "Bleh! You better watch out!" She said as she came out from under his grip, red hair even messier than before.

"Justice will be swift! Justice will be painful! Ju-"

"Justice will have to be _silent_", Davin quickly interrupted with a harsh whisper, "I think we're passing the library!"

Ruby quickly looked around, embarrassed of the noise she was making near a library, but only to notice there were no doors nearby...

"Gotcha."

"ACK!" Another friendly punch to Vin's shoulder.

After a minute or two more of walking to the next class, which happened to be across the school, Ruby returned her attention to her now silent partner.

"Hey, Vin."

"Yeah?"

"Can I ask you something?"

"You just did." A glare from Ruby.

"Kidding. Sure, what's up?"

"Have you been able to remember anything since you got here?"

"..."

"Not much I'm afraid." He sighed, "I've caught a few bits of info and facts, but mostly things I could imply or otherwise deduce."

"Like what?"

"Mmm, like the fact I'm not from here, the fact I have two parents who looked after me alot..."

"And?"

Vin's face darkened just a little in deep thought.

"...And the feeling that thing's weren't going so good back home before I lost my memory."

"Oh." A brief pause.

Ruby felt sad with Vin, so in an effort to comfort him she added, "I'm sure your parents are all right, maybe you'll remember everything soon enough and find that they're okay and at home waiting for you to come back."

Seeing her earnest smile brought Vin to at least return a weak smile of his own.

"I dunno, Rubes. It's weird. It's like a puddle of water... if I try to remember, all it does is cause more ripples, making things more difficult. When I wait, things settle, and that's when some memories come into focus. But _certain_ things don't get any clearer no matter how hard I think or don't think about them. As if only _particular_ memories were meant to be wiped, the rest maybe coming back as I come back together again..."

He was looking into the landscape as they walked, a distant sorrow in his eyes that made Ruby wish there was something she could do to make it better. Vin noticed his dampening mood and decided he should slowly bring himself back to normal.

Turning his attention to Ruby, he tried his best to smile. "It's funny though. For some reason, I remembered a book I read about someone who went through a similar situation as myself."

Ruby perked up, intrigued by the connection. "Really? What was it about?"

"It's still kinda fuzzy, but the main character had his mind wiped and woke up to a place he'd never been to before. It had to do with lots of running. And a puzzle I think."

"What, you mean like a Puzzlerunner or something?" she mentioned with an amused smirk.

"Meh, I dunno. Something like that." He was genuinely smiling again.

"Did he ever get his memory back?"

"...Dunno. Can't remember." His smile having faded during his response, he looked up and away into the distance again, his gaze floating away to a place somewhere further than the skies...

Until feeling his arm being taken by another. Ruby had wrapped her arm around his, resting her head on his shoulder as they walked, finally bringing him back to his current reality.

"It'll be ok, Vin. No matter what happens, you'll always have a home here in Beacon."

She looked up at him from beside his shoulder.

"You know that, right?"

He was starting to believe it. Taking his arm out from between them and wrapping it around her shoulder, he lightly squeezed her to himself in a hug.

"You bet I do. You're a good kid, Rubes."

After another minute or two of walking together, they reached their next class.

Needless to say, the rest of the school day went very well for the new student.

* * *

In another part of Beacon, Jaune waited impatiently for the briefest pause in Miss Goodwitch's lecture about aura's interaction with dust, a question having been burning through his mind since the night before.

Finding his chance, he shot his hand up, surprising his redhead partner beside him and the rest of his team sitting behind him on a higher row.

"Miss Goodwitch! I, uh, I have a question!"

Turning courteously to the young man with hands held professionally behind her back, the Huntress responded.

"Yes, Mister Arc?"

The knight fumbled a bit with his question as he tried to choose his words as carefully as possible.

"Uhh... I was wondering if... say... it was, I dunno... _possible... _for someone to survive without an aura?" The students in the room looked at Jaune incredulously at the obvious question, a few snickers already starting.

The straight-faced teacher stared at Jaune for just a moment.

"No. Without an aura, you die."

She was about to turn around to the board so she could continue her lesson when the blonde leader interjected another question.

"But say it _was_ possible! What would that kind of person be like?" The students around him were beginning to whisper to each other, even Pyrrha glancing at him with confusion.

The Huntress sighed, "Mister Arc, it simply _wouldn't_ be possible. Our aura is our will, our power. Without it, we can't think, feel or act. We would simply _die_."

Jaune's shoulders slumped at the firm response, a motion that his keen teacher didn't fail to notice.

"Is there something about the topic that you'd like to share with the class, Mister Arc? It seems to be a subject of interest in your case..."

The student shot up in his seat, his face flushing red as he babbled nervously, "Uh, _no! _Nah... it's nothing real serious or anything, hah! What a funny thing to say! Why would you say _that__? _No, uh... I had just read it from... an... X-Ray and Vav comic?"

The students in the classroom erupted in laughter. Glynda merely shook her head, taking a deep breath to control her potentially volatile temper.

"Very well then, Mister Arc... If you would _please_ refrain from asking off-topic questions in class, we will return to the subject of things that _are_ physically possible with aura."

"Yes Professor Goodwitch," He replied monotonously as the students in class continued to giggle.

The Huntress promptly whipped the teacher's desk next to her with her riding crop which sent a loud snap through the classroom, all with just a flick of her wrist. The room fell silent.

"Now where were we..." She turned to the board and resumed her lecture.

Pyrrha, still a bit worried, leaned in to Jaune a bit, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," her leader responded looking down morosely, but still glad that he was let off with only a warning.

Not willing to give up so easily, the Spartan pressed for information a little more.

"If it's about your aura, Jaune, my offer of aura training is still open..." She paused smiling, hoping to receive a positive reaction from the subject of her affection.

"Well, it's just..." He began slowly.

Her smile fading at his hesitation, Pyrrha remembered what had happened the last time she had mentioned aura training on the rooftop.

"Jaune," she interjected with a downcast expression, "if you don't wish to continue training, I understand... I respect the way you feel about Weiss and-"

"No!" The knight interrupted a little too loud, blushing as his reaction momentarily drew the attention of a few students in their vicinity. He spoke again at a lower volume.

"I mean, no, I really _do_ want to continue training with you, Pyr..."

Her spirits suddenly lifted from within as she scooted just a little closer to her partner.

"But what about Weiss?"

"Nothing more to be said about it, it's just not meant to be," he replied with a small smile before continuing confidently, "besides, I _know_ when I'm either wanted or not!"

"Oh really," The Spartan deadpanned at her neighbor's obviously misplaced self-opinion.

"Of _course__! _I guess this isn't my year, that's all. Maybe the right girl will come along next... year..." The confidence in his voice trailed off as he noticed his partner's incredulous stare, a soft blush tinting her cheeks a light red.

"Uhh... Pyrrha? You okay?"

She was _not_. The incredibly frustrated Spartan felt like she was about to admit everything to him right then and there when both students turned to see an eager Nora leaning in too far towards them, eavesdropping from her higher row behind them.

"Nora."

"EEP!" Caught red-handed, the orange-haired girl quickly sat back in her seat just before their teacher looked in their direction. The three students straightened up as if they were paying attention.

As the platinum-blonde teacher wrapped up her discussion, it was now Ren who leaned in towards Nora.

"How much did you hear?"

A devilish grin spread across her face.

"_Everything_."

The stoic smiled in anticipation as he responded.

"...And your verdict?"

The hammer-wielder raised an eyebrow as she calculated, finally whispering gleefully, "I give it two...maybe three dahs _tops_ before we see the christening of the S. S. Arkos!~"

"And so the great ship will finally set sail..." Ren mused thoughtfully as the bell rang, glad that the months of frustration and denseness may finally soon be over.

* * *

Later that afternoon, Davin exited his last class feeling informed about this world around him. History. In class, he was able to make out the four kingdoms of Remnant and paid very close attention to the lectures of a Professor Oobleck, who went into great detail recounting early events of the Great War. But man that guy could move _fast_.

Still, the lecture seemed to strike a few chords within him. He looked at his long list of notes and decided to look further into the matter. Maybe he wasn't completely disconnected from this world after all.

As he left the room, Pyrrha called his attention. Jaune was following right behind her. The three had the same last class.

"Sup, guys. You wanted to tell me something?"

"Yes!" Pyrrha replied as she caught up to him, "remember that Professor Ozpin wished to speak to you after class?"

"Oh yea! I remembered, I just needed to find my way."

"We can take you if you want," Jaune proposed, "it's actually not too far from here."

Davin was relieved. "Really? Of course! And that's good to hear, I swear I've walked for _miles_ today between classes!" They began to laugh.

"Don't worry, Davin," Pyrrha tried to comfort him, "You'll get used to it with time!"

"Ack, if you say so. Just don't speed off on me again!"

"Not a problem", she replied smiling.

The pair now led Davin down the halls toward the headmaster's office, and as Davin followed along, he couldn't help but notice how close Jaune and Pyrrha walked alongside each other. And every time they accidentally brushed against each other, they'd momentarily make eye contact and quickly avert their gazes with a slight blush on each student. This happened several times.

Davin had to make a mental note to bug Jaune about that later. That was too fun to watch.

He was about to bug them about it now after they'd accidentally brushed hands for the thirtieth time before being interrupted-

"Here we are! The office of a one Headmaster Ozpin! Thank you for your travels via Arc Navigators, please be sure to thank your guides on the way out of the tour!" Jaune said with an exaggerated bow.

"Thanks Jaune."

"Tips are always appreciated."

"HAH. No."

He looked at Pyrrha. "Thank you as well. Make sure you and Jaune don't misbehave on your way back, 'kay?" he teased with a wink.

Pyrrha looked away blushing, Jaune looked confused. Davin understood the dynamic in an instant. Jaune had no clue.

This was gonna be fun.

Needing a quick save, he simply added with a winning smile, "you know, don't break anything on purpose if you guys train at night".

Worked well enough.

"We won't." Pyrrha said with a smile before turning to go, but stopping halfway down the hall upon realizing Jaune wasn't following. He had stayed back to have a quick word with Davin.

"Um Davin, there's something I gotta talk to you about real quick." His voice seemed rushed. Maybe even urgent?

"Sure, what about?"

"Not now, but when you get out. If you can, meet me at the library in an hour, it's about... ugh, it's about your _aura_." He spat out the last part, deciding to get straight to the point.

Davin had seen enough of this strange energy's effects on people to stop thinking of the idea as a bunch of hooey.

"Fine. See you then. Now get out of here. If I were you, I wouldn't wanna keep _her_ waiting." A nod towards the Spartan in the hall.

"Yea, yea. See you then."

Davin smiled as he saw the blonde knight reach the young huntress-in-training, both smiling warmly to each other and seeing Pyrrha turn to give Davin one last wave as they disappeared around the corner.

Could Jaune really be so dense? He was curious to know. But at the moment there were bigger fish to fry.

Turning to the large door in front of him, the label 'HEADMASTER' staring him in the eyes, Davin sighed.

"Here we go."

* * *

**_The Valean War_**  
_TPS (c) 2014_


	13. Vol 1-11: The Headmaster, Pt 1

_**The Headmaster, Pt. 1**  
-XI-_

* * *

_Knock, knock, knock._

"You may enter."

Davin opened the door to the Headmaster's office and stepped in.

Inside, Davin looked around to see large oak bookshelves lined with literature of all sizes entirely lining the walls to his right and left. Due to that, the smell of fresh wood and aged paper permeated the area.

The floor itself was lined with the light brown oak as well, in contrast to the stone used elsewhere in the academy, his footsteps resounding against the solid wood as he took slow, deliberate steps to the single large wooden desk at the center of the room near the rear. Above it, Davin noticed a cylindrical light source protruding from the ceiling, emitting a light that seemed to dance around from within. Dust.

The overall effect was to cast light over the light brown oak to give the entire room a golden brown eminence, as if rays of a sunset were cascading into the room no matter what time of day it was.

"Please, take a seat. I hope you don't mind meeting here, I prefer this room over the clock tower office at the top of the Beacon spire."

The white-haired man sat calmly on the other side, his cane resting against his seat and ever-present mug clasped in both hands on the desk. Having replaced his usual morning brew for a relaxing tea, he watched as the new student took in his surroundings.

Davin took a seat across the Headmaster in a simple wooden chair.

"Of course not. You wished to see me, sir?"

Behind the desk, the entire back wall was made of glass, a small terrarium on the other side. Light foliage brushed against the other side of the top corners and sides of the glass wall, smaller shrubs and flora of differing colors and types populating the area close to the ground. Under the now setting sun outside, the soft shade of the light against the dark-green leaves made for a beautiful picture. It was like looking into a painting.

The older man studied the boy behind a sip of tea for just a moment longer before responding.

"Yes, of course. We were to arrange your dorm accommodations and team assignment. I understand that up to this point you have been rooming with team JNPR?"

"Yes, sir."

"You may call me Professor if you'd like." A small smile taking the edge off the formality in their discussion.

"Thank you, Professor."

"You are welcome. Though team JNPR's act of hospitality is quite generous, it will no longer be necessary as we do abide by a four person per room cap. We try to be as adamant as possible with our enforcement."

"I understand." Davin kept his answers short to let the Professor guide the conversation where it needed to go.

"That being the case, our last two dorms have been taken, each by only a single student. As we would not wish to compromise you by assigning you to a dorm with only one other female student, I will have you assigned temporarily with Neptune Vasilias. He is another new student here, recently transferred from Haven. I believe you've met him?"

"Yes I have. I'd have no problems with the arrangement."

"Good, that now brings us to the topic of team assignment-"

"Teams, sir?" Davin had heard the term a few times that day but didn't quite understand how the teams worked.

"Yes, upon entry into the academy, each student is assigned to a four-person group with whom they are to room and train with for the duration of their education here at Beacon."

"Ah. Makes sense." That explained a lot. Like why people walked in groups of four all over the school.

"Now," the Headmaster continued, "since there are only two other students with no teams assigned in the academy, we will need to wait until the end of the month until the transfer period ends between the combat academies in Remnant. I hope you won't mind the wait?"

"No, not at all."

"Very well, if another student applies for a transfer in that time, a team will be formed, effectively ending our transfer period. After the enrollment period ends, there is a transfer period between the four combat training academies in Remnant and a few other combat schools of note. There are only two ways to enter an academy during the latter period. An accepted transfer request, or..." he took a sip of tea before continuing, "as in _your_ case, a direct offer."

"I am honored, Professor. Thank you."

"No, thank _you_ for your unconditional entry. Not many who are given a direct offer accept so readily." He was calm as he spoke, but Davin could tell he seemed to be debating something from within. He took another sip of tea.

"It was an offer I couldn't refuse." He said with a convincing smile. "Was there anything more you wished to speak of? Otherwise, I can show myself out," Davin stated as he made the motion of getting up to see how the Headmaster reacted. If the Professor was going to show his endgame, it'd have to be now.

Without any other apparent motive to keep the student any longer, it almost seemed as though the Professor would just finish the conversation and have Davin dismissed, and was about to seemingly do so until his eye caught the makeshift quiver. His gaze drifted to Starkillers. Putting his mug aside, he sat leaning forward on his chair now, hands resting on the desk clasped in front of him.

"I see you've chosen your armor and weapon. A _very_ interesting weapon choice, I might add."

"Oh... um, thank you." Daving replied, thrown off a bit by the turn of attention to his weapon.

"It's quite a formidable, and dangerous, item. Tell me, have you learned how to use it yet?"

"I'd like to think so..."

"Please, show me."

Seeing no reason not to oblige to the Headmaster's request, Davin did so. Now standing, he unsheathed Starkillers, and after powering it up with a _zzzzshhhh_, he moved it around a bit as it hummed in response.

Seeing the Headmaster nod as a motion to continue, Davin then powered on the second blade, spinning both a few times before stopping and turning the second half of the handle all the way, now standing with Starkillers separate in both hands.

"An amazing weapon, isn't it."

"Yes, sir. I find it truly outstanding." Ozpin could tell the student meant every word.

"It was used mostly in the Great War. They were indispensable in the efforts to gain the advantage over the Grimm which ultimately led humanity to victory."

"So I've learned. I am honored that I was able to acquire the only one in Beacon, though it was very difficult to find. I'm sure there's a great possibility that I would've missed it entirely."

"Well," the Professor began, having found his opportunity, "they say that a great Huntsman will seemingly gravitate to a weapon when given the task of choosing, as if it were calling out to him. It is said that his _aura_ makes the choice, essentially creating a bond between Hunter and weapon."

Though the young man tried to hide it, the trained eye of the professor caught the air of despondent unfamiliarity with the subject surrounding the student.

All doubt was purged. He had decided.

"Tell me, Mister Rosefield- may I call you Davin?" Ozpin interrupted himself.

"Of course."

"Tell me Davin, did you know there is one more feature to your weapon? One that has been all but forgotten since the Great War?"

Davin's eyebrows raised in curiosity.

"No, sir. I did not."

"Hmm. I thought so." Ozpin stated cooly as he got up from his desk, leaving his mug behind and grabbing his cane. He moved around the side of the desk until he stood on the same side as Davin at the center of the room, both hands resting on the cane in front of him.

"It will require you to exercise your _aura_, Mister Rosfield."

Davin's face paled at the remark.

"S-sir?"

"Do not be startled," Ozpin began, "it is an exercise of willpower, which fuels your aura. I'll need you to concentrate."

"I-If you say so, sir."

"First, you'll need to hold both blades downwards in each hand, the opposite way of your current grip."

Both blades were pointing up by how Davin was currently gripping them, obviously, so he quickly flipped them into a back-handed position, pointing down.

"Good, now for this part you'll need to concentrate. Do you see the bottoms of the handles in each hand?"

Seeing that he was holding Starkillers upside-down in each hand, of course he could. Those ends were the ones that connected to each other when Starkillers was in single-blade mode.

"Yes."

"Excellent. Now, open them."

"Sir?" Davin was confused.

"I would like for you to open those ends as well."

Davin looked at each end of the handles. They were each solid. He returned his gaze to the Professor, a quizzical look on his face as if he'd been presented a riddle.

"Is... there a button I need to press?"

"No." He said in an almost amused tone.

"You must _concentrate_, you must _will_ them to open. Your aura bonds you to the weapon, Davin. Starkillers will read your intention as if it were a part of your very self."

Realizing he had nothing to lose, Davin turned to his weapons, mentally commanding them to open up as Ozpin had said. The Professor was watching intently.

After a few seconds, nothing had happened.

"Nothing is moving, sir."

"Concentrate harder."

Brow furrowing deeply, Davin concentrated with all his effort, straining his eyes on the handles, imagining them to open. After another full minute of effort, he was finding it difficult to hide his frustration as nothing happened again. What a stupid idea, this _aura_ thing!

"_Nothing_, sir."

"No..." the Professor said softly as if he were telling himself an old story, eyes closed as he sighed, relaxing himself, "it's there. I can _feel_ it."

Davin stared at him perplexed.

"Don't think. _Feel_."

Seeing how the Professor acted, Davin decided to follow suit. Relaxing his grip on the handles, he sighed deeply and closed his eyes. Another deep breath, and his whole being relaxed as well. And as easily as anyone could will their eyes to open again, he _willed_ his weapons to follow his command.

His heart skipped a beat as he heard a pair of _clicks_, unexpectedly followed by the sound of twin blades emerging.

_zzzzzzooshhhhh  
zzzzzzishhhhhhh_

Opening his eyes, he saw that he was holding two _dual_-bladed Starkillers in his hands. He could only stare at them in shock.

"This...this is _impossible_. It's _supposed_ to be impossible!"

The Headmaster saw Davin turn his gaze to him in disbelief, but with a gleam of utter amazement in the young man's eyes.

And for the first time that Davin - and probably any other student in Beacon - had heard of or remembered, he saw the Professor smile.

An unrestrained, genuine smile.

* * *

_**The Valean War**  
TPS (c) 2014_


	14. Vol 1-12: The Headmaster, Pt 2

_**The Headmaster, Pt. 2**  
-XII-_

* * *

Davin was utterly and completely floored.

Whether he had his memory or not, this surely had to be the most impressive moment of his life. He had controlled an inanimate object with his _mind_, or _aura_, or _whatever_ method it was that he couldn't explain!

The Headmaster watched Davin examine his equipment's newly found features, smiling internally at the recently unfolded events and letting the moment sink in for the young man.

But suddenly eyeing Starkillers with confusion, Davin looked up at the Professor. "But sir... two _dual-_bladed Starkillers? Seems a bit unwieldy in battle, don't you think?"

"Well, that depends on how you _use_ them."

"I'm afraid I don't follow..."

"Well _that_," the Headmaster replied smiling again, "is something I'll have to let you figure out on your own. When the time is right."

"...Yes, sir."

"But as for your first exercise, you learned that one _very_ quickly, Davin." He said impressed, letting his smile revert to his casual smirk.

Davin paused for a moment, reflecting on the implications of the Professor's statement.

"Wait. Are you saying there's a learning curve for this kind of thing?"

"Oh, yes!" the Professor began in amusement, "It took me _weeks _in the academy, and _I_ was one of the top of my class, mind you."

Davin's brow shot up in surprise at the admission to those details about the Professor's past.

"Indeed, learning to use my weapon in that manner would prove to be a skill that has proved indispensable to my survival up to this day." He looked down pointedly at his cane.

NO _WAY_.

Watching in amusement as Davin stared slack-jawed at his cane, Ozpin was able to make it drop even further as he continued. "But our little lesson isn't over _yet_."

Bug-eyed, Davin replied, "It isn't!?"

"No. There's one more _defensive_ maneuver that you will do well to practice. Davin, with enough focus, you can bend and distort the beams of your weapon to create solid barriers around you."

Davin was paying very close attention. "You mean like a shield?"

"Yes. Any defensive barrier you can imagine."

"I'll make sure to practice then." Davin held out a half of Starkillers in front of him, wondering what it'd look like.

"And you will. Beginning now."

"Um, sir?"

"Concentrate, Davin. You must defend yourself... right NOW."

In not even a fraction of a second, Ozpin had already lifted his cane, twirling it twice over his head to gain momentum and was bringing it down with deadly speed onto Davin.

Having thankfully already had his arm out, all Davin had time to do was close his eyes, subconsciously finding his weapon and imagining a barrier as if it were sprouting from within his very self-

_CRASHHHzzzzzzzzzzzz_...

Davin opened an eye to see that the force of the blow had pushed him down to the ground. Though he was kneeling, he looked up to see his arm was still up, and a...

He couldn't believe it. A square meter of a thin barrier separated him from the end of Ozpin's cane, the tip of which, still in contact with the barrier, was creating thin forks of electricity which stretched out from the point of contact and moved around as if from within a plasma field. The shield seemed to be powered by two pulsing streams of energy from the holes at either end of the Starkillers in his hand, the beams of light having disappeared.

Ozpin removed his cane and returned to his original stance with both hands on it in front of the young man. Davin got up in disbelief, looking at this weapon which only seconds ago was a grayish-white blade of light and that was now a shield that glowed an even brighter..._purple_.

"Out_standing_." The professor said, looking at how the shield cast a purple glow on everything around it. "It's a bit weak, but solid. Incredible. Our lesson has concluded."

Davin had finally figured it out. As easily as he could flex his arm, we willed the shield to revert to blade form and close. The weapon promptly followed his orders.

"Permission to speak freely, Professor?"

"Of course."

"I think you're crazy."

Ozpin let out a light-hearted laugh. A _laugh_, something else Davin had never heard before.

"Be that as it may..." Ozpin said smiling as he returned to his seat, "As you can tell, Mr. Rosfield, you do indeed have an exceptional awareness of your Aura."

"But Professor Ozpin," Davin needed an explanation now as he took his seat across from the professor, "what _is_ an aura?"

The white-haired man put his elbows up on the desk, resting his chin on his hands and closing his eyes as he took a deep sigh, as if preparing to tell an age-old fairytale...

"_Well_. Where to begin..."

* * *

_Meanwhile..._

Two figures stand over a rooftop, weapons drawn and ready. Raising their shields as a signal, the Knight and the Spartan begin to come at each other in full force.

_Aura.  
Aura is the manifestation of our soul, our will. It bears our burdens and shields our hearts..._

The two figures make contact, the sound of clashing metal echoing in the evening air. They begin to trade blows in close quarters.

_With practice, our Aura can be our shield. Everyone has it, even animals..._

A quick succession of blows from the Spartan sends the Knight flying back into a wall. Somehow unharmed, he gets back to his feet and charges the Spartan with a yell.

_Now, the monsters we fight lack a soul. They are creatures of Grimm, the manifestation of anonymity..._

The two figures clash again, and tapping into his internal energy for the first time, the Knight somehow pushes the Spartan back with increasing strength as they re-engage.

_They are the darkness, and we are the light..._

The Knight's attacks greatly increase in strength and speed, the Spartan's eyes widening in surprise as the Knight begins to glow a brilliant white. Unable to hold him back, she escapes to higher grounds and readies her spear, aiming to kill. She needs to be sure.

_By baring your soul, your Aura, outward as a force, you can deflect harm..._

Sensing the incoming spear, the Knight, yelling in fury, catches the spear in midair with a large white aura-projection of his hand, then throws it harmlessly to the ground. The Spartan jumps down next to him...

"Jaune!" Pyrrha shouts with a broad smile in utter awe and elation...

* * *

_Back in the Headmaster's Office..._

"All of our tools and equipment are conduits for Aura. You protect yourself _and_ your Aura when fighting." The professor opened his eyes as he finished his narration.

"Wow..." Davin had never imagined such a force existed from within, but now couldn't help delving deeper. "But if it's a part of us, then what's it made of?"

"Simply put, Aura is our power. Any Aura is a delicate balance of two forces from within: dark and light. This doesn't mean good or bad, necessarily. It is merely the balance of power within a person. Power that gives when there's little else, and power that takes to avoid overload. Each is necessary to the other. Understanding dark and light helps us manifest our Aura. Everyone has a bit of both." As he finished, he took a sip of tea.

Davin watched the Professor taking his beverage, content with the explanation but somehow sensing that there was more to the subject. He decided to make a gamble.

"There's _more_ to it, isn't there, Professor..."

"Why yes there is," he noted the curiosity of the student on the matter. He looked down as if deciding whether or not to continue, but knowing what was at stake after observing this student, he began slowly.

"This is the part few know... there are a very rare group of individuals who have more of one than the other. They are... _unbalanced_. And very powerful. Most who are born that way do not survive, dying early on in life. But for those who do survive, the imbalance generates vast amounts of said aura in the person to compensate for the lesser half, leaving them with the purest form of the properties of their respective dominant aura."

A raised eyebrow from the student.

"Displays of _power_, Mr. Rosfield. Both groups need to give off as much excess Aura as they can, flaring them out uncontrollably and almost constantly, which causes a flow of power affecting everything around them. It's either that or they die... one group because they have more power than they need, and the other... _never enough._"

Davin leaned forward listening to every word, riveted to the the ideas being presented before him. He found himself deeply drawn to the matter and could've spent hours more doing research about it, but judging by the way the Professor was speaking, he knew there weren't any books on the subject.

For now, his conversations with Ozpin were the best he was going to get, so he decided to press on for at least a bit more information.

"Are there any of the Unbalanced in existence today?"

Another sip of tea.

"Indeed there are. However, they are rather scarce. Only one or two ever roam Remnant at once. Interestingly enough, the only one _I_ know of attends this academy."

Davin straightened up in surprise. _This_ school?

"The individual in question has shown incredible battle capacity and improvement as a future Hunter, which is why they were named a team leader. This student has shown truly vast potential..." The Professor paused as several faces passed through Davin's mind in a guess as to who the individual could be.

"...as have _you_." The mental search was promptly paused.

"Excuse me, sir?"

"Yes. You have demonstrated an exceptional ability to manipulate your Aura, not only to connect with your weapons and demonstrate impressive speed, but also to endow you with a superior intuition and hyper-acute reflexes. And _all_ this with a locked Aura, which was supposed to be impossible."

Davin realized how much sense the Headmaster was making. He didn't know any other way how to explain his heightened senses, but still, the theorized state of his own Aura only begged further questions.

"A _locked_ Aura? How is that possible if an Aura is power?"

"A locked Aura is merely the underdeveloped power of any individual. It is why you do not experience the physical regeneration nor a semblance, a unique ability manifested by every Aura-aware individual once fully developed, or unlocked. To unlock an Aura usually requires an igniting force from another Aura; in _your_ case, Mr. Rosfield, the Aura from a significantly potent individual, as the process can be very straining on the benefactor's end."

The prospect of never being able to reach his full potential bore down on the young man, his curiosity on the subject matched only by his desire to continue improving in its physical applications.

"Then what do you advise for me to do?"

The Headmaster returned a small smile. "For now, nothing." A cocked eyebrow from Davin.

"Though you may have chosen this path and are indeed a Hunter-in-training, you are still a child. My advice is not to rush yourself. After all, it isn't a role you'll be able to play forever."

The young man could see the wisdom in his Headmaster's words. He reciprocated the understanding Professor's smile.

"Thank you for the advice, Professor Ozpin."

"All will come in due time. Train yourself, hone your skills, make new _friends_... your Aura's strength has already established itself in your presence, incredibly enough, in a nearly unprecedented manner..." the Professor slowed as if somehow suddenly realizing something, "as a matter of fact...a presence I haven't felt since-"

The Professor's thought was interrupted by the unexpected entrance of a seemingly distraught Ms. Goodwitch, who upon seeing the young man immediately did her best to regain her composure. Without acknowledging Davin as she walked by, clearly with a focus in mind, she handed Ozpin a small black folder.

"An urgent report from Ironwood. It's about the comm tower."

Turning to the door, she gave a slight nod to Davin before exiting. The Headmaster briefly eyed the contents of the folder before returning his attention to Davin.

"Well Mr. Rosfield, I'm afraid our conversation will need to continue at a later time as an urgent matter has come to my attention. It has been a pleasure." He finished with a small smile as he and Davin rose and shook hands.

Davin had received many answers that night and felt truly indebted to the Professor for the enlightenment that he had no idea he had bestowed upon the young man. Yet, a few questions remained that he had decided not to bring up to the Professor, at least not yet. Why could he manipulate a locked Aura? What made _him_ so different? And more importantly, why couldn't he remember anything?

But still, as he reached the door, Davin felt it pertinent to ask one more question before he left.

"Professor, how does one know if they are _Unbalanced_?"

"Without a semblance to go by, only one way really..." the Headmaster had given his back to his student and was busy surveying the contents of the black folder with an increasing concern hidden from the young man, but he answered without turning, "it'd be by having an expert Healer try to connect directly to the Aura of the Unbalanced."

"And what would happen then?"

"Nothing. They wouldn't be able to find it."

* * *

_**The Valean War**  
TPS (c) 2014_


	15. Vol 1-13: Crossing Paths

**_Crossing Paths  
_**_-XIII-_

* * *

Jaune couldn't believe it! He had done something absolutely awesome with something absolutely crazy that had absolutely never been seen before at Beacon! And to top it all off, he had done it in front of a really cute girl!

He and Pyrrha now couldn't stop talking about it, in hushed whispers of course, as they made their way back to team JNPR's dorm.

"It was the most amazing thing I've ever seen! How did you feel when it happened?" The elated redhead had been peppering the blonde with questions since they'd come down from the rooftop.

"It was _awesome_! I barely even realized what was going on, I just _felt_ the incoming spear and _wham! _Anaura version of my hand smacks it out of the sky before my mind could react!"

"Incredible! You've truly begun to spread your wings as a Hunter, Jaune." Her warm smile melted through the poor boy's defenses... he felt his imminent blush coming on strong.

"I know! I mean- it's thanks to _you_\- I mean- your _training_\- I mean, also you too..." he couldn't continue anymore and, catching the Spartan by surprise, suddenly reeled her in for a bear hug in the middle of the hall.

Which wasn't something she was about to complain about. But still...

"J-Jaune! W-What if others see?" Her face was blushing as red as her hair.

"I don't _care_. Let them see, I wont let what other people think get in the way of how grateful I am for you now."

Feeling herself ecstatic but somewhat deflated at the implication that his sudden show of affection was only due to gratitude and nothing more, she decided to try and put something more into the moment as they pulled away from each other.

"Well Jaune, I hope you know how grateful I am for everything you've given me as well..." she blushed as she decided to add the next part, "maybe even _more_ than grateful..." She looked down at the floor, sheepishly scratching the back of her head.

Jaune didn't seem to get the hint.

"Grateful? But Pyrrha, why would you feel grateful towards _me_?"

She sighed internally. "Remember what I had told you at the dance? How everyone assumes I'm too good for them and how it had become impossible to form any sort of meaningful relationship with people? That's what I like about you. When we met, you didn't even know my name. You treated me just like anyone else. And thanks to you, I've made friendships that will last a lifetime."

Jaune blushed again as they began to continue walking. "Oh yea... I remember that."

"Jaune, you're a special person to me, someone who just sees me for me. And... I don't know if it's possible for me to imagine myself without you around anymore..." Jaune felt the same pang within him that he had felt on the balcony at the dance as she was making these admissions.

She looked up at the knight as they stopped in the hall standing close to each other once more, her experiences with him flashing though her mind from their first meeting in the locker room to the occurrences that night on the rooftop, and now her affection for him was swelling within herself as her eyes pleaded for an understanding reaction from his. She didn't know how much more she could handle.

She was about to lose all self-control in 3... 2... 1...

"Oh look, we're at our room!"

She looked up at the door to find that they were indeed at their dorm. Her shoulders slumped in dejection.

"_So_... um, I guess we should talk about this later?"

She perked up again. 'Later?' Did that mean what she thought it did? Was he finally understanding? Wait...

"Aren't you coming in too, Jaune?"

He suddenly seemed nervous.

"Um... uh, no. Not yet. I... realized I forgot my _X-Ray &amp; Vav_ comics in the library..." He sped off before she had a chance to question him further.

Pyrrha saw him turn the corner as she internally facepalmed herself for goading herself into a faux 'moment' before finally opening the door and stepping in.

"Good night..."

* * *

Having memorized his way to the library from his earlier walk with Ruby, Davin arrived at the large doorway just as Jaune sped around the corner to the same hallway.

Seeing the red-faced blonde, Davin decided to give him a moment to catch his breath after seeing him collapse face down to the floor.

"Hey there, Jauney-boy. You look like you were high-tailing it from something... or _someone_. This wouldn't have anything to do with our friendly neighborhood Amazonian warrior, would it?"

A muffled grunt from the floor signaled the affirmative. Davin picked up the limp form off the ground towards the library door.

"Come on, bro. We'll talk about it after you've told me what you gotta say."

"...Hey, what's an Amazonian?"

"Um... my bad, one of those fuzzy memories coming back, I guess. It's nothing."

As they entered the main hall, only a few students roamed the area at that time, which to Davin made it the perfect place to have a private conversation. A few desks down, only the fox-Faunus sat quietly, eyes closed as he played the air drums along to a song played by his ever-present headphones. He obviously wasn't going to be a problem.

Guiding the blonde knight to a nearby desk, he noticed how quickly the kid had recovered from his exhausting sprint.

"_Well_, you seem to recover quickly from a decent run. Were you a runner before Beacon?"

"Uh, no." Jaune replied as he sat down. "I guess training here is really paying off, maybe."

"Okay, then. If you've got your breath back so fast, then I'll ask the first question. What's up with you and Pyrrha?"

Jaune went from normal to tomato-red in no time at all.

"W-What!? Pshhh, what are you talking about?" The nervous student replied, trying to evade the subject.

"Uh huh. Won't be so easy with me, man. I'm guessing something just happened. What, did you two finally confess love already?"

"SHUT. UP."

Davin couldn't help letting out a small snicker. "All right, all right. Sore subject I guess, sheesh. But I'd bet my pretty new equipment that something _did_ just happen. You mind sharing?"

With a frustrated sigh, Jaune did. About everything that happened on that rooftop. He knew the newbie wouldn't believe it until he showed him, so after looking around furtively he showed Davin a dazzling display of his aura-projected hand. To Jaune's surprise, Davin only sat there studying the anomaly stone-faced.

"That's... pretty impressive, Jaune... You know anyone else who can do that?"

"No!" Jaune began excitedly, having finally drawn a response from his companion, "Pyrrha says that in her four regional tournaments in Mistral she had _never_ seen anything quite like it!"

"You don't say..."

Davin brushed off the notion. Couldn't be. And at the moment of silence following the last comment, Jaune now decided to take the reins of the conversation.

"Anyways, now to talk about _you_."

"Me?" Davin echoed perplexed.

"Yes, I had been meaning to tell you before, but we all got so caught up in things today, and you with your first day and all, that I didn't get the chance to tell you before."

"Okay, spill it."

"It's about something I found out after finding you in the forest, it's about your _Aura_-"

"...I know."

"WHAT?" Jaune couldn't help shouting.

'Shh!' A few shushes from other students in the area.

"What?"

"Headmaster explained it all to me. Said he had noticed when I fought and when I was in his office. He told me that my Aura is just a little weird, that's all."

He pulled out Starkillers and demonstrated his ability to bend the light beams as he molded the now purple shield into a gauntlet-shaped barrier around his forearm.

"Whoa! That's definitely something! Wait..." Jaune paused, clearly holding back a giggle, "is that... _purple_?"

Davin stared back at the blonde.

"As a matter of fact, it's not precisely _purple_! It's similar, but I always forget the name of the exact color."

"Haha suuure. But all that... is by your Aura?"

"According to Ozpin, yes."

Satisfied, Jaune decided to leave out the bit about Velvet. 'I guess her gloves were just faulty after all,' he concluded.

"Well I guess that takes care of what I wanted to say then."

Davin sheathed his weapon.

"I guess so."

"...Do you know where you'll be sleeping from now on?"

Now pulling out the new scroll he had received during Miss Goodwitch's Dust 101 course that day, he went scrolling through his few messages and contacts. He still thought it strange... Davin remembered having another name for this sort of mobile device where he came from.

Still, he stopped at the recently received message from the Headmaster.

"Yep, got it right here. Looks like I'll be rooming with a Ne-" Davin caught himself, sensing a possible connection between the two students. "...a New student who happened to transfer as well. I got the map right here." He showed the location to Jaune before realizing his mistake.

"Oh hey! That's around the corner from us! I guess we'll see you tomorrow then!"

Darn. "Okay no problem, see you then." Both students stood up to say goodbye.

* * *

Davin had stayed back for a bit under the pretense of seeing a book that caught his eye to avoid Jaune walking him to his room. Finally leaving the library, Davin reached his new room after several minutes of searching.

Stepping in, he saw Neptune getting ready for bed. The blue-haired boy had on a simple white t-shirt and black shorts as pj's, a stark contrast to his stylish outfit neatly laid out on the adjoining bed. Davin instantly _loved_ the burgundy jacket. The Haven transfer noticed the guest enter.

"Oh hey! I heard you'd be coming. I see you still got that armor on. Well, make yourself at home, Roomie!" Neptune motioned to the beds across the room.

The room didn't look like much. Aside from the second desk, it was much like Team JNPR's room. Davin walked over and fell back on a vacant bed. A smile crept on his face as he remembered the events at the forge.

"SO. Ruby mentioned something about commitment earlier... wanna talk about it?"

"Umm, it was nothing really..."

Davin could sense the blue-haired student blushing without seeing him. He continued with relish.

"There's a girl involved in this, isn't there."

"Aren't you gonna change for bed?"

Subject change, seriously? Not that Davin could blame him. It _was_ a combat school, after all. Female students would likely be in top form, and in those schoolgirl _uniforms_... he shook off the thought. But one blonde bombshell fragment remained...

"No... tired. No clothes. No reason." the young man finally replied to his roommate, "I'll drop by the commissary tomorrow and see if any clothes got donated or something."

"Suit yourself."

"I _will_."

"HAH," the blue-haired student chuckled at the weak pun, "just make sure to wake up early tomorrow."

"Eh?"

"Yea, some kind of weekly assembly going on."

"For what?"

"Featured graded sparring matches."

"...juuust _PEACHY_."

Neptune flicked off the lights.

* * *

Davin was overtaken by sleep much quicker than he thought he would. It was only his first day after waking up from some sort of coma, after all. Yet for some reason sleep still came swiftly, throwing him into the realm of subconsciousness.

He seemed to be enjoying a dreamless night when all of a sudden he was awake in his mind's eye. He was somewhere... dark. He tried to move around, or at least felt like he was moving, but he couldn't even tell if he was.

No... this place was more than dark. It was _black_. Nothing could be felt in this state. Was this what it was like being blacked out before being found in the forest? Well, calling out wouldn't hurt at least.

"Anyone there?"

No sooner had he said that when he heard a sound very much like someone striking a match in the distance. Trying to turn around frantically to find the source of the sound, his efforts were met by a blinding light suddenly erupting from the darkness.

As his vision adjusted, he noticed that it was a light being traced along the blackness like a welder tracing a blowtorch around his work. Except in this case, the fiery eminence burned _purple-ish _\- he just _knew_ the color wasn't a true purple. It was off-purple... like lilac. But lilac wasn't it.

He looked on as the purple-ish line started curving around to create a form, several other lines beginning to form around it with searing, burning lights. His eyes widened in confusion as he began making out what it was...

* * *

Davin woke up in the early morning, dawn barely breaking. It was a good thing he did as he remembered the end of his conversation with Jaune the night before.

"Neptune? Hey, Neptune... _Blue Dude!_"

The sudden gasp and rustle of sheets across the room signaled that his roommate hat sat up in his bed, startled.

"W-w-what!"

"Hey sorry about that, but I just remembered something. You may wanna head out early this morning."

Quickly regaining his usual cool composure, Neptune turned to look at his new roommate.

"And why is that?"

"I think I'm going to receive an unexpected visit soon. Our mutual friends probably know where I'm rooming by now."

He could hear an audible facepalm across the dim room. "_Seriously_, man!?"

"My bad."

Neptune got up and left to get ready, deciding to go out for early training. Davin opened his scroll to check the time, remembering that the first time he woke up it was shortly after 8 am, and at that time he recalled team JNPR already having been late for breakfast. It was now almost 7 am. After Neptune returned to pick up his weapon and left, Davin decided to get up to clean himself up as well.

At around a quarter to eight, Davin was just finishing up tidying the room, wistfully trying to remember a dream from the night before, when he heard faint knocking on his door.

"You can come i-"

_WHAM!_

The door was smashed open by none other than Nora with Magnihild now slung over her shoulder. Davin was pretty sure the door had been splintered beyond repair.

"Morniiiiing!~"

The orange girl saluted the baffled young man and stepped inside with the majority of teams RWBY and JNPR following behind her. Ren stepped in first.

"She's very sorry," he apologized meekly.

The rest came in and were looking at the new place. Jaune began to speak.

"Hey! Thought we'd come by to pick you up for breakfast, Pyrrha and Weiss went ahead to save us some seats."

"Nice place you got here, Newb!" Yang piped up as she looked around the room, "You room here alone?"

"This bed looks like it's been used." Blake casually observed as she looked at the bed across from the one Davin was standing next to.

"Oooh, who's your roommate? Some cute girl?" Yang continued with a grin.

"Um... some guy I met yesterday. He's a recent transfer."

"Oh! Uhh, I'm sure he's nice!" Ruby started quickly as she realized who Davin must've been talking about. She walked up to him trying to change the subject, and found one as she took a second glance at his armor.

"Heyyy, I don't remember that being there yesterday. Did you do that yourself?"

Davin looked down in surprise, following Ruby's pointed finger to his medallion and nearly gasped at the sight. What was once a solid gold medallion now had an onyx-black engraving on it... of a _flower_. He now remembered his dream. Both forms were one in the same.

"Umm... I guess we didn't notice it the first time?"

"Aww, now that's just _cute_. A little flower!" Yang teased with a smirk.

Snapping out of his current state of reflection, Davin grinned as he shot back a response while glancing at her emblem.

"Yea well at least it's not my heart on fire. That looks like it'd be painful. Besides, flower emblems are _cool_." He and Ren fistbumped.

Yang stuck out her tongue at him.

"Well I think it looks nice!" Ruby continued, "What kind of flower is it?"

"No idea."

"Oh... okay. Well we should get going, breakfast starts soon! Come on, Vin!" She smiled as she grabbed him, pulling him out of the room.

The students began to turn to leave. As Davin passed Yang, he noticed a strange look on her face as she looked between her sister and himself, but didn't give it much thought. He was hungry.

The two teams met up with their remaining members in the cafeteria and ate. Davin enjoyed his breakfast without anything crazy happening for once.

'...or any teasing from Yang,' He thought with a tinge of disappointment which surprised him. He was getting used to her antics.

Having finished breakfast, the nine students set off to the Ampitheater, taking their seats in the stands above and around the main arena of Beacon which was situated in its own massive building.

They watched with great attention, and at times amusement, as the matches went on. The last one was another one with the same mace-wielding kid who mercilessly beat on his opponent until the match was called. He was a good fighter, but he seemed like a jerk. Ms. Goodwitch now stepped on to the arena grounds.

"Match victory goes to Cardin Winchester. Good performance."

Looking back at her tablet, Davin somehow saw from a distance what almost looked like a smile creeping to her lips as the Huntress prepared to continue.

"For our final graded match of the day, we will be calling down to the arena Miss Weiss Schnee..." The white-laced girl stood from her seat.

"...and Mister Davin Rosfield."

'You gotta be _KIDDING_ me!'

* * *

**_The Valean War  
_**_TPS (c) 2014_


	16. Vol 1-14: The Heiress

**_The Heiress_****_  
_**_-XIV-_

* * *

Davin couldn't believe his bad luck.

Pyrrha gasped at the thought.

Ruby smiled in anticipation.

Ren snickered in response.

Nora was...Nora.

Blake was about to drool again.

Yang sat with arms crossed.

Jaune was amazed that someone could have as bad a luck as his.

Weiss looked down at Davin with a smile.

"Hah! _This'll_ be an easy A..." she trailed off as she jumped _off_ the spectator's deck and down to the arena some two dozen feet below. Davin watched as she landed elegantly in front of Miss Goodwitch and unhooked Myrtenaster as she stood up, the rapier at the ready.

"Aw nuh-_uh_." Davin walked over to the nearby elevator lift and pushed the button to go down.

He waved at the laughing students as he descended, not really caring to prove anything. Even Yang had to try and hold back a smile.

Blake noticed how the brawler was acting and tapped her shoulder.

"Hey Yang, you ok?"

"Grr..."

Blake sat back and saw Yang brewing in her own anger, mumbling something about something being 'no fair' and a 'stupid forge'.

"Huh? Oh yea Blakey, I'll be _fine_. Depending on _how_ this fight goes... oh, and you got something on the side of your mouth." She returned her gaze to the arena with a grin.

Blake dried her mouth.

As he stepped over to an amused Miss Goodwitch and impatient Weiss, Davin couldn't help wonder _how_ this had come to be.

* * *

Somewhere in Beacon, Ozpin sat at his desk chuckling to himself as he looked at a tablet with a live video feed of the arena in one hand and taking a sip of coffee from the other.

* * *

"Very well," the Huntress began as each student stood at the ready, "final match ready to begin at the end of the countdown. May the best one win." She walked off as each student's face lit up on two large banners on one end of the arena over their names.

"_So_," Davin directed himself to Weiss as they positioned themselves at opposite ends of the arena barrier going up around them, "now that I have you to myself, may I ask...what's your problem?"

"Hmpf." She seemed just as icy as before receiving the question meant to throw her off. "No _problem_, I just don't see how Ozpin could've just invited a _nobody_ into Beacon. I simply intend to prove that his decision was unwise."

"Whatever you say, Lady." Davin smiled as he stood at the ready. He decided to use Starkillers single-bladed with this one.

"So how do you say it in your sport?" Davin began as the countdown went down, powering up Starkillers, "ah yes, _Allez?_" The starting _beep_ sounded. With the vocabulary that sprung to mind, the young man knew his muscle memory and instincts were at the ready with their hidden training as well.

"Heh. If you _can_, new boy."

Davin saw her spin the barrel on her sword and set off a strange set of yellow signs on the floor, standing confused for only a moment before watching her glow yellow as well and speed toward him on a deadly advance, rapier out on a lunge.

Glyphs. Crap. He had only a millisecond to manage a parry as she sped by him, barely missing her target. The blades had connected and rebounded off of each other. 'Dust-infused metal,' the young man recalled from the forge.

"And don't forget _en garde_. I may not even need any dust for you."

"Umm..._touché?_"

The heiress began methodically engaging her opponent as they went back and forth, displacing most of his attacks while getting as close to target as she could with her own. His fencing was terrible, but he managed to dodge most of her lunges and advances as well.

It really was bad. Davin knew that his limited knowledge of this formal fencing technique wouldn't take him far. At least the Lady was keeping her word on holding back on dust, giving him the opportunity to watch and learn her movements.

But it wouldn't be enough, her combined aura and dust-enhanced speed would soon prove too much for him, as he realized after a misplaced advance elicited a riposte from the heiress which sent him flying several feet away.

"Learning quick, new boy. But not quick enough!"

He decided to change tactics.

Before she could lunge, Davin came at her twirling Starkillers around himself quickly in side to side motions, creating arcs of light that caught her off guard.

_voomvoomvoomvoomvoom_-

"Wha-?"

She ducked and dodged as the young man made a swift sideways swipe with the light-blade, missing her by inches. Davin noticed that fencing was useful to him, but _this_ technique came way more naturally.

Grabbing the hilt with both hands, he began using the bright nature of the blade and disorienting hum to his advantage, and it was paying off. Weiss now laid off the wisecracks as she began to focus, the unfamiliar offense presenting a growing threat.

As the audience noticed the change in tactics as the newcomer began his very fast twirl-and-slash technique, they moved closer to the edges of their seats as well.

Davin now had a decent handle on his weapon, spinning around as he came around off a feint and slashing at Myrtenaster, using the deflected momentum to somersault over the disoriented heiress in time to bring a fast slash of the light-blade onto the heiress from the other side.

For the first time, he had her on a defensive horizontal guard position as he pushed Starkillers down on her vertically, each standing inches apart. Light-blade cackled and fizzed against metal as the young man looked into the cold heiress' eyes.

"Ready to yield, Lady?"

Her eyes steeled as her rapier began sprouting red runes all over itself...

"NOT TODAY, PEASANT!"

The entire arena rumbled with the explosion as Davin flew all the way across the arena, almost falling out the barrier as he landed hard on his back.

"Uuugh. _Didn't_ see that one coming."

He got up in time to see her speeding at him, yellow glow surrounding her. _Man_ she was fast! He now focused his energy into his mind, speeding up his all too familiar process.

_Parry, slash, spin spin spin block, double touch, spin spin counter-parry.._.

He weaved his way around Myrtenaster, falling up and around Weiss as she began throwing out blue glyphs which manipulated his area of gravity. Focusing power into his legs, he continually jumped above and around her with flashes of his blade crashing against hardened rapier in a dazzling show of lights and dust clouds.

_Flip, counter, spin spin spin slash, flick, spin block, ...why is her rapier glowing light blue, CRAP._

Hit by a wall of ice, Davin was frozen into place by a _very_ annoyed Weiss as she came at him surrounded in a dark violet glyph which couldn't mean anything good. With a violent crash, her semblance-augmented attack sent shockwaves of pain through his body as he flew through the air, leaving him in a vulnerable crouched kneel when he landed. Looking up, he saw her coming down from the air with her blade over her head, fighter and sword glowing in pure white. She was going to end this.

But instead of coming down full swing, her blade suddenly _shot out_ several beams of pure white energy towards the weakened student, the very force of which kept her in mid-air seconds longer, all aiming to converge on the grounded form. He put up Starkillers and focused.

A bright light blinded everyone for a split second before the force of a concussive blast knocked over most people near the arena, the blast itself having torn through the dust barrier.

And to everyone's utter surprise, Davin remained crouched, unharmed under a purple dome emanating from Starkillers. Davin got up and looked at Weiss who stood without Myrtenaster in hand, her rapier embedded into the floor some distance away having begun to glow red from overheating after what was supposed to be her final strike.

"IMPOSSIBLE!" She was fuming.

But before Ms. Goodwitch could come out to call the match, Davin motioned with his hand for her to stand back, then looked to the angry Weiss.

"Oh no, Lady... please, take _mine_."

Unscrewing the second half of Starkillers, he powered it on and threw it to the heiress to everyone's enjoyment. The battle was still on!

And to Davin's surprise, her initial look of confusion now turned into a small smile. _That_ was new.

"Hmm. I guess you might not be so bad after all... _peasant,_"She grinned as she came at him, unexpectedly adopting the same technique he had been using. She had been studying _him_ as well.

The two re-engaged with swirling arcs of light, blades crashing and humming as they spun around each other with great speed.

_voomvoomvoomKSH, voomvoomKSH, KSHKSH, voomKSHHHHH!_

The unfamiliar sounds filled the air as the two swung each hallf of Starkillers at and around each other with increasing speed until Weiss, having figured out the light-blade, swung a devastating blow to the newcomer with a now dark-violet light-blade which left Davin on his back.

She now stood over him, dark-violet light-blade at his neck and smiling as the audience broke out in thunderous applause. That is, until she looked back down at the young man.

"And why do you think _you_ should be smiling!? I have the killing _stroke!_" Her smile had quickly become a grimace.

"_Do_ you?" He replied with a smirk.

Before she could answer, her half of Starkillers unexpectedly powered down, Davin now holding up his half for her to see.

"See? Remote control! Shhh!" he said with a grin, loud enough for only her to hear. He stood up as Ms. Goodwitch re-entered the battered arena.

"And the final match goes to Ms. Weiss Schnee. Very well done."

Weiss shoved the powered down hilt to her opponent, and seemed to be about to say something mean when she suddenly chuckled aloud from mid-thought.

"You know what, Davin? That was _actually_ a decent fight. I know at times I can be a bit... _difficult_... but don't take it too personally. I'm surrounded by dolts and dunces. And besides," she paused with a confident grin before continuing, "I still won."

Davin couldn't help chuckling at the slight softening of her icy exterior.

"Well, Lady, there's a lot I can learn from you. I appreciate a good fighter and there's no doubt there's one standing right in front of me."

She smiled but then asked, suspicious of his motive, "Why do you keep calling me 'Lady'?"

"Well you _are_ one, aren't you? A girl deserves due respect."

"Hmm. Good answer." She grinned again as she airily turned away, pulling out Myrtenaster from the rubble beside her. She was more than the Ice Queen people made her out to be.

Having watched the heiress leave, Davin now turned to Ms. Goodwitch who had just dismissed the remaining students.

"Miss Goodwitch?"

"Yes, Mister Rosfield?" She looked at him, switching out her tablet for a riding crop in her hand.

"If you can please tell Professor Ozpin I stand corrected... I now think he's REALLY crazy."

Unable to hold back a smile at the student's correct perception about the instigator to the match, she responded, "I shall make sure to do so. He had also asked me to respond that after all, you have missed credits to make up for."

"Well played, Professor. Well played..." the young man muttered to himself as he turned to walk away, the amused Huntress now turning her attention to the task of putting the arena back together.

* * *

It now seemed Davin was receiving some recognition around the school. As the day went by, people were stopping to congratulate him on not dying, as he had gone against _Weiss _and she had a reputation after all, and on even making a good show of the match.

A few girls even stopped to give him their names and contact info, which he soon realized was serving to peeve the blonde brawler even more. He had to know what was going on, and decided to take a chance at finding out after dinner.

He ran down the hall that evening and caught her several yards from her room.

"Hey Yang, what's up!" He called out to her as he ran up to meet her. She turned around, arms crossed.

"Hey."

"Look, um... I've noticed during the day today that uh... you seem to be a little..." a faint sound of cackling flames again, "_heated_ about something today, and I can't help thinking there might be something I've done to provoke it?"

"Oh _no_, of course not. _Nothing_ at all!" Her usual excitement and almost joyful tinge to her words in daily life even seemed to apply when she was clearly upset. Davin wasn't going to find out anything _this_ way, however, so he tried a different angle.

"Oh! Okay! Awesome, PHEW! I'm so glad we got that cleared up then! I guess I'll be on my way..."

"_Actually_..." Bingo. "now that I think of it, there might be a little something... _Vin_."

He was beginning to get the idea.

"I see you learned my nickname."

"_Yea_, real cute. You know, _I'm_ usually the one to give those out. Kinda goes hand in hand with the pun thing. Now I hear my sister got to give you a nickname _first?_"

He shuffled his weight a bit as he organized his next thoughts, "Yea, I guess your sis kinda beat you to that one. _I_ actually told _her,_ I guess we got to having a heart-to-heart on our way back from the forge."

Yang took a step forward. The sound of fire got louder. Wait... was that from her _hair?_

"Whoa whoa whoa! _Not_ what it sounds like! We talked while we were hanging out, that's all."

His sincerity managed to disarm Yang at least a little, but she wasn't letting him off the hook that easy.

"Sure... that's what they _all_ say."

"Well if it is, I'm sure there's good reason. But I'm saying it how it is."

"And what is it you're _saying_, exactly?" She then asked with narrowed eyes.

"Well, I'm _saying_ that I don't think this is very much about Ruby... _Little Sun Dragon._" Davin finished, casting her a knowing smile.

Yang was caught off guard at this. He had taken the time to learn what her name meant?

"What, I wanted to come up with a nickname for you, Xiao Long... and Little Sun Dragon really fits the bill."

"Oh _does_ it, now?" The fiery blonde retorted with a nearly menacing air.

"Well, yea! I couldn't help noticing your bright personality and sunny sense of humor kinda pairs off with your sense of fun and... occasional snarkiness..." he continued with a grin.

Though she still seemed to have a neutral expression, Davin could tell the beginnings of a smile were starting to form on the corner of her lips.

"...and to top it all off, all of that gets packed into a..." he motioned with his hand what looked to be her height. She cocked her eyebrow.

"_Short?_"

"...I was gonna say _Fun-Size_, 'packed into a _Fun-size_ package'... Which also happens to be a little short, yea."

She let out the smallest chuckle. Time to make full amends.

"Look," he began again as he walked up to the brawler pulling something from behind his back, "I brought these berries for you. I noticed Nora was tossing them at you during dinner and you really seemed to like 'em. I brought you some more before they ran out."

"Are you trying to _bribe_ me?" She responded with warning.

They _were_ her favorites, though.

"Nooo, think of it as a peace offering. For what I did to offend you." He smiled warmly. "But if a bribe works... then yea. It can be a bribe too."

Yang let out a small smile now.

"Mmm, it might be working a little bit..."

"Hah okay," Davin couldn't ignore the warm feelings of reconciliation inside and reveled in them for a moment as she took the small bag and started munching on a berry, "So, we cool?"

"Hmm, sure... _Vin_," she gulped down a berry and smiled meaningfully, "but next time, you'll have to let me be your _first_ for something too!" She gave him a wink and reached for another berry. She wanted to get the upper hand on this now.

"Uhh, okay? Not quite sure I follow on that last part..."

She let out a frustrated sigh.

"I swear to _Dust_, Vin! If you're as dense as _Jaune_, I-"

Yang cut herself short as Davin leaned down close to her face until they were looking at each other eye to eye. He spoke in a warm, soft voice.

"I know, I know. Like you said the first time, you'll beat me to a pulp."

She felt herself beginning to blush. He had turned the tables back on her!

Stepping back before her blushing became too evident, she stated as firmly as she could, "T-That's right! A-And don't you forget it!"

"I sure won't, Miss Boss Lady!" he winked at her. "I mean, Little Sun Dragon!"

She turned to walk away in order to hide her smile.

He then walked away as well and turned the corner, but not before calling back down the hall, "And for the record! You look REALLY CUTE when you blush!"

This stopped the blonde brawler in her tracks, making her blush so hard her hair caught fire.

* * *

**_The Valean War  
_**_TPS (c) 2014_


	17. Vol 1-15: The Brewing Storm

**_The Brewing Storm  
_**_-XV-_

* * *

_BANG._

_BANG. BANG._

_BANG._

The percussive sounds cut through the air randomly somewhere in southeast Vale above an old abandoned warehouse. The sun was setting along the derelict buildings above ground, casting shadows that seemed to jump with every blast.

_BANG. BANG. BANG!_

Maybe not as abandoned as people thought.

Inside a half-demolished building, a smoking barrel was readying another shot.

_BANG. BANG!_

"Grr..."

Narrowed eyes glinted under a bowler hat, scanning the floor for the target. A particularly annoying little mouse.

_BANG BANG BANG!_

"I think, even if we duct taped that pesky thing to the floor, you'd _still_ take all day to actually hit it."

A voice from behind the shooter. A young woman with red eyes and short light green hair, two long braids trailing behind her. The shooter paused his activity for a moment to pinch the bridge of his nose.

"Oh why don't you go back to playing with your _toys_, hmm?"

"Meh. I got bored. And your terrible aim was disturbing me."

"Of _course_ it was."

The mouse suddenly scurrying into view, the girl swiftly drew one of her twin pistols from her back holsters and fired, leaving a crater where the rodent once ran.

"Grr... lucky shot."

" 'Of _course_ it was.' " She echoed, sticking out her tongue.

"Emerald, you can be _very_ annoying at times, ya know that? It's a _wonder_ I even put up with you!"

The smooth criminal rested on his cane as he straightened out his white coat and coolly lit a cigar.

Roman Torchwick.

Most wanted criminal in Vale, savvy 'redistributor' of goods, as he liked to call his line of work. And right now he was sure he deserved better than this. At least he could find solace in his cigar.

Emerald caught his attention with her usual annoying disregard for just about any authority.

"Heh. _You_ don't have a choice."

"Don't kid yourself. You're no further up the ladder, kid."

"Well we _all_ have to wait for orders sometimes, don't we-"

"-And not that I care about what you two are talking about, but you both know _my_ opinion when it comes to _waiting_."

A third figure walked into the room. Grey hair contrasting with black outfit, Mercury Black strolled through the main warehouse floor, evidently bored as well. Emerald shot him a half-annoyed glare.

"Not that _we_ care what you have to say either, Mercury." She crossed her arms as he approached.

"Whatever. You want me." He chuckled at his own remark.

Roman seriously didn't understand the chemistry between these kids. Frankly, it weirded him out.

"_Honestly_, and this comes from the bottom of my heart..." Roman began as he feelingly put his hand on his chest, "you two are just _strange_."

"Oh, you three. Your bickering could make an _Ursa_ cry."

The three turned around to see the fourth of the group walk into the room.

Cinder Fall.

Her sultry voice hung in the air as it always did, her tone subtle in a way that shrouded a tinge of mystery over every word. As she walked toward them, Roman couldn't help but notice how her form-fitting dress always hugged her curves, entrancing any who stared long enough just as much as she could with a look from her bright amber eyes.

'Ah. _That's_ why I put up with those other two idiots,' He thought to himself. Didn't make him any less annoyed at the moment, though.

"Well, _that's_ what happens when you leave me the kids while you go off trying to figure out your little _gameplan_! And speakin' o' which, as I've said before, it'd go much _smoother_ if you told me what it _was_."

"And as _I've_ said before," the enchantress approached him with an alluring smile, "you will know what you need when you need to know."

The sly thief didn't really have any defense against that one.

"Besides, now that Phase Two was successful, communications between kingdoms have been effectively wiped out." she stated with the slightest tinge of victory in her voice, "This will facilitate the execution of the Final Phase. For now, all we need to do is-"

"Wait?" Emerald interjected but quickly shrank back as Cinder shot her a glare from glowing amber eyes in response, "Sorry..."

"-we _move_. It's time to meet up with the White Fang to organize the first strike."

"You mean with that brute Crudus? He smells _really_ bad." observed Emerald.

"He does," Mercury agreed nonchalantly.

Roman recalled the large Faunus foreman who had introduced him at the unveiling of the Paladin which was so unceremoniously destroyed on its inauguration night by those pesky Beacon kids. He didn't seem too bad. Stupid enough to manipulate.

"Nevertheless, still necessary," Cinder continued as she now looked at Roman, "and we can use some more men from your 'friend's' club. We may see more of the Beacon students as we prepare to strike."

"Al_right! _Nothing like a few goons to beef up the cavalry!" he quipped with false enthusiasm.

She let out a small smile, but not at what Roman had just said.

"And it may be time to bring that Junior fellow in the loop as well."

She was planning something big, that was for sure. But for now Roman had no other choice to follow orders. He was in too deep now.

Roman left the warehouse with Emerald and Mercury who had returned to arguing about who had the most ridiculous outfit at the Beacon dance from the previous week, leaving Cinder alone in the warehouse as a device at her side began to beep.

Pulling it out, she unfolded it and put it to her ear. It looked like a scroll but wasn't. Long distance communicator. Increasingly difficult to grab these days after word about the crashed comm systems leaked out in hushed whispers.

"Good timing as usual."

'_Enough with the pleasantries. I abhor introductions_.'

That low rumbling voice laced with murderous tones was one of the few things that could send chills down her spine. It was doing so yet again.

'_What is the status of Phase Two,_' devoid of any emotion, it barely sounded like a question.

"I-It has gone exceedingly well, communications have been disrupted all around Remnant."

'_And?_'

"We will be aiming to set up the distraction soon to prepare for your arrival."

'_And_?'

"W-We have encountered only minimal resistance."

A brief pause.

'_And this resistance has been eliminated I'm sure._'

"N-No, not yet. We will be waiting to ambush their only forces as they converge on the distraction," She began to feel perspiration building on her temples as she feared his response.

Another brief pause.

'_That had better be the case upon my arrival. I will be sure to dispatch... aid... of my own. Failure will not be tolerated._'

Relieved, Cinder responded a little too light-heartedly, "That makes two of us, Darovit."

'_GENERAL!_' the murderous growl of a barely human voice roared through the comm device, '_...to you. Do not forget with who it is you are speaking._'

"Y-Yes, sir... General Darovit."

'_Good. You will be notified upon my arrival._'

The line went dead.

A disturbed Cinder gulped down the knot that had suddenly formed in her throat. Steeling herself back into her usual composure, she too turned and walked out the building.

* * *

Later that night in Beacon, Jaune lay on his bed waiting for sleep as he stared up to the ceiling.

The morning had gone well enough, and he had enjoyed the duel between Weiss and Davin, but was near the dust-and-aura-triggered blast that had shattered the dust barrier which knocked him off his seat.

He felt fine as he got up without any real difficulty... okay, maybe Pyrrha helped him a little, but he felt unusually drained the rest of the day. It was as if lead weights were tied to his ankles, wrists and eyelids without any explanation.

So, after he was told that Davin along with team JNPR would be going to team RWBY's room for cookies and pancakes, he had to reluctantly decline. He laid on his bed counting sheep when a knock at his door threw off his count.

It opened, and Pyrrha came in.

"Hi Jaune, are you awake?"

He sat up groggily on his bed.

"Uh, yea sure."

She turned on the lights, but kept them dim so they wouldn't stress his eyes too much. She went to sit at his side, a worried look on her face.

"You don't look so good, what happened? You need anything?" As she said this, she placed her hand on his forehead to check his temperature. The skin on skin contact never failed to send shockwaves through his system.

"U-um, I'm okay. I just think I was having an off day, that's all."

He took her hand from his head and guided it back to her, but was too tired to remember to remove his hand after he had done so.

"Hey, are _you_ ok, Pyrrha? You seem flushed."

She meekly looked down at his hand on top of hers. He was about to remove his hand and apologize when to his surprise, she stopped his retreat by subtly grabbing his hand with hers, interlacing their fingers.

"I guess I was just thinking, that's all..."

Jaune felt his heart beginning to beat faster as he responded.

"About what?"

"Mmm, _well_... last night." She shifted herself to be closer to him.

"O-oh? What about it?" He was having difficulty concentrating with the electricity coming up from his hand.

She enjoyed the warmth he gave off when they were close, and found herself terribly addicted to it. It made her feel safe and at home.

"Well I just wanted you to know that I'm glad to have you as a leader, but... I don't think that's entirely the truth anymore..."

His heart sank at the last part of her statement, his voice now shaking a bit as he replied, "W-What? What do you mean?"

She looked at his blue eyes with a growing smile, "I think I'm _more_ than glad now. You really are special to me Jaune, and every part of me wants nothing more than to show you that."

Jaune's heart rose again, but now his stomach sank. He was afraid of holding her back, keeping her from reaching her full potential. Or dust _forbid_, being incapable of protecting her when she needed it most.

"I don't know, Pyrrha. I can't tell you how thankful I am for everything you've done, but I wouldn't want you to spend even more time with me because you feel sorry for me."

He really didn't get it?

"Jaune!" the Spartan almost shouted, surprising the poor blonde knight out of his grogginess, "What on _Remnant_ would make you think I feel _sorry_ for you!?"

"Pyrrha," the blonde sunk his head in dejection, "Who are we trying to kid? I came to this school not knowing how to fight, barely able to use my weapon, and much less able to hold my own against the very real threats that surround us."

He looked up at her with such sadness in his eyes that it started to break her heart.

"But _you_? You're one of the best warriors to walk Beacon, able to take on several opponents at a time! I mean, team CRDL are _still_ nursing injuries from your sparring match last week! You're kind, intelligent, beautiful, but those words can't even _begin_ to describe you accurately!..." His eyes were lighting up with raw emotion.

"...You've won _four_ tournaments, not only doing so with grace but also inspiring countless others in the process! You're not just a beautiful girl, Pyrrha, but you're also a beautiful _person_. How can I compare? So now I ask _you_, Pyrrha Nikos. What on Remnant _wouldn't_ make you feel sorry for me!" No, his eyes weren't just lighting up... his aura was flaring behind them.

But now, finally understanding the white knight's reasoning, the Spartan only smiled as she reached over to take Jaune's other hand.

"Jaune. You are smart, cunning, noble, and yes, I trained you so you could learn a few basic fighting skills, but that's where your need for improvent ends. You're a considerate and cunning leader, and not only that, I've _never_ met anyone so committed to doing the right thing or determined to better themself to better protect those they care about..."

She smiled warmly at him and held his hands tighter.

"..._That's_ what makes you different, Jaune. And _now_," she said with a chuckle, "I'm not sure how much longer I'll be able to keep my place as top fighter at the rate you're going. You are well on your way to doing _incredible_ things..."

Jaune was now running out of reasons to resist. He knew she was right, and more so, the white knight now _knew_ he liked her back. He was hearing things now that he thought he'd never hear in his life, and still, she continued speaking, removing all doubt.

"...And above all, even when you become a hero, I know you will always keep a humble head about you, treating others fairly and like _people_ as you have done with me. And _that's_ why I care about you. And you know what?" This was finally going to be the moment... "If you let me, I'd be willing to spend a _long_ time showing you just how much I do..."

She leaned in closer to Jaune as both instinctively closed their eyes, Jaune finally making the final move forward to make contact.

The moment his lips met hers, the initial wave of sensation wiped all feeling from his body, as if nothing were happening at all. But then it came, that warm feeling that entered through his lips and spread throughout his body bubbling over in pleasure, pulse racing as their kiss became deeper, more passionate.

And for the first time in as long as he could remember, Jaune felt no insecurities. As if everything was going to be okay, no, going to get _better_. He felt... _complete_. Nothing could take that from him now. He had found a young woman, a friend and partner, who believed in him as much as he believed in her.

They slowly pulled away from each other, his arms somehow having found their way around her waist and hers around his neck. Both were softly panting after their first intimate display of affection.

"Wow." Pyrrha finally said.

"Yeah."

They stayed there for a little longer, enjoying each other's company and touch. Jaune didn't want to ever let her go. And then, after another moment or two of warm silence, the most amazing thing happened.

"Um... Jaune?"

"Yeah?"

"...I-I love you."

He barely had time to register the wave of warm emotion racing through his body before his heart practically hijacked his throat to respond, "I love you too, Pyrrha."

He reached for her cheek, running his thumb over her soft skin before gently pulling her in for another kiss.

Her world was now complete, as if all the pieces had finally fallen into place. And she wouldn't change it for anything. The last few months hoping he would notice how she felt were only like _hours_ now that she was in his arms, her sweetest dream coming true right in front of her.

Pulling back once more, Jaune looked over as he saw Pyrrha's scroll buzzing. She looked back at it as well, long forgotten on the desk from when she had entered the room.

'Well, a good moment can't last forever, I guess~' she thought with dreamy frustration.

"I should probably head back. They're expecting me."

"_So_... I guess we'll talk about this later?"

She smiled as she recalled the last time he had said those words.

"Oh, we'll _talk_ alright." She grinned at a confused Jaune as she leaned in and quickly stole another kiss before getting up and walking to the door.

"Good night, love!" she said over her shoulder before stepping out.

"G'nite!"

Jaune couldn't believe how lucky he was. Sleep now came over him easily, as if it was waiting for that moment to happen all along.

Things were really going to get better...

* * *

_**The Valean War**  
TPS (c) 2014_


	18. Vol 1-16: Team VNDS

**_Team VNDS  
_**_-XVI-_

* * *

Jaune lay in his bed with his eyes closed, as he had woken up the next morning feeling just as tired as the previous day.

But he didn't care. A one very important event had occurred the night before, throwing his view of the future wide open with possibilities and giving him that tingling feeling of warm happiness within himself at every instance in which he recalled it.

Jaune mentally replayed the scene over and over in his mind as if it weren't true, as if he was overthinking things again. But no, it was now impossible to say that... he had kissed Pyrrha Nikos, and she had actually kissed him back!

He felt so ecstatic that he was beginning to feel sure that it couldn't be real... that is, until a light kiss on his forehead brought him to open his eyes.

Under the early dawn light, Pyrrha sat on his bed, leaning over him to softly kiss him awake so that neither Ren nor Nora stirred.

He looked into her eyes and saw every bit of affection he remembered seeing the night before. His joy tugged at his insides as if telling him to believe the gorgeous sight before him. Yep, it was real. It had really happened.

"Jaune?" she whispered to him as her hand stroked his hair.

"Mmm, yeah?"

"Would you like to join me for early training?"

"Uuugh, do I have to?"

She deadpanned at Jaune, raising her eyebrow.

"Kidding," he smiled, "of course."

As he sat up, he silently returned a kiss of his own to her forehead before getting up to change. He could get used to this.

Once they left, he noticed that she had become significantly more touchy-feely since the night before, seeming to always want to be in contact with him as they walked the halls by either holding his hand or keeping her arm around him all the time. Something else he wouldn't mind getting used to.

And of course, they never made it to the training area. When Pyrrha said 'training', she had actually meant 'talk'. Jaune didn't seem to pick up on that hint when he realized she had woken him up at 4 am, the dim morning light still barely lighting the objects around the pair.

Guiding him with her hand in his to a small coffee table outside the arena near the food court, they sat together and began to talk. They retold all of their shared experiences together starting from the first time they had met, except from their individual perspectives. They both couldn't help laughing at all the missed cues that had passed between them during their friendship.

By the time dawn broke, they had gained a much deeper understanding about each other, their lively conversation still going strong even when Davin suddenly came around a corner in a muscle shirt and dark purple sweatpants, having finished a run around Beacon's perimeter.

Wiping himself with a towel, he caught them at the corner of his eye and looked at each of them for a moment before waving.

"Hey guys! Mind if I join you?"

The couple was caught by surprise, but didn't mind the company of their unexpected visitor.

"_So_... how are you two?" He asked them with an ear to ear grin as he sat down on the third chair around the table, towel thrown around his neck.

"Oh, we're just talking. Decided to get an early start on the morning."

He simply sat there for a moment eying each of them with a knowing smile.

"I guess a congratulations is in order for you two, isn't it."

Pyrrha simply looked at him with curiosity. Was it really that obvious?

"Last night." Davin stated before relaying his deductions to the new couple, "First, when you had left the room to check on Jaune, you were perfectly awake, Pyrrha. But when you returned, you had difficulty sitting down with ease. Then when Yang teased you about being with Jaune, you answered with a genuine smile while maintaining eye contact. That's when I _knew_."

'Oh really?' Jaune thought. He had no idea their moment had ended up having that effect on her.

"Knew what? I'm afraid I do not know what you're talking about," Pyrrha replied with her best poker face, a small smile under her seemingly uninterested gaze.

"Well, reaching for your chair a few times indicates that an internal recall was taking priority in your mind, distracting you as you moved around. Being a highly efficient fighter trained to handle multiple mental and physical processes simultaneously, only a strong emotional event would create such an effect. And your normal response to teasing was previously to blush and look away, but now it's different. Even now, _neither_ of you are acting embarassed. You don't care what they say now, do you? I wonder _whyyy_..." Davin drew out the last word as he turned to look at the shocked white knight.

Pyrrha couldn't help a wide grin at his unfailing perception. Jaune was surprised, once again.

"Okay, so is that little... _trick_... you do some kind of internal switch, or do you operate like that all the time?" Jaune asked in disbelief.

"Meh, think of it as a hyperactive intuition. Yang and I managed to do the same thing to Blake to reveal the location of a... certain book collection of hers. I had Yang set off a nearby smoke alarm as I observed Blake's reaction, and sure enough, her gaze darted to the location of her 'valuables' like a worried mother to her scared little children..."

Two raised eyebrows. So the rumors _were_ true about Blake's copies of the 'Ninjas of Love' series.

"...and okay, it's kind of a hobby."

"Fair enough." Jaune conceded.

"But a congratulations is in order for you two love-birds, nonetheless!"

Jaune smiled and shrugged as he looked over at Pyrrha and took her hand, who turned to Davin with a grin.

"Thank you, Davin."

"Just keep it between us for now," Jaune began to ask, "and we'll tell everyone when we're ready."

"You kiddin'?" Davin replied with a fair measure of surprise, "I think they'd want to know ASAP! But don't worry, _I'll_ keep your secret safe and sound..." a grin started to grow on him.

Jaune tensed on instinct. 'Wait a sec...'

"...but I can't say the same for _her_." The couple hastily followed the direction of his pointed finger to a certain blonde brawler who was now in the middle of the hall staring at the couple's joined hands with mirth. She exclaimed with a fist bump,

"I _KNEW_ IT!"

"Sorry! Yang figured out I knew something about you two last night and talked me into doing this!" Davin apologized as he quickly stood up.

"DAVIN!" Jaune gave chase with glowing fists to the laughing young man as he fled. Yang held two thumbs up to Pyrrha before speeding off in the other direction.

Pyrrha simply got up smiling to herself as she decided to follow her lovable white knight.

* * *

The Spartan met up with Davin and Jaune further down the hall a minute or so later, both laughing at their own reactions and having a good time.

They both smiled at Pyrrha as she joined the group and the three began setting off to their rooms.

"So how did you know when and where to find us this early in the morning?" Pyrrha asked out of curiosity as they began the long walk back.

"Oh that one was easy. If anyone kisses their long-time crush for the first time, you think they'll be able to _sleep?_ No way! Besides, you strike me as the heart-to-heart type. So a nice secluded outdoor space would've been the first place to find you two this morning."

"Not bad."

Pyrrha had to give it to the guy. He had his gifts.

"Oh! and there was _ooone_ last thing I needed to ask, but I needed to wait to actually be alone with you two to do it..." Davin asked another minute or two later as he walked next to the couple who were once again holding hands.

"Jaune, I need your help."

The White Knight was curious to know what the newcomer might possibly need.

"Sure man, what's up? I hope I can help."

"Oh I dunno... depends. How'd you do in combat school before Beacon?"

"I uh, I never went actually. No schools accepted me when I was younger." Jaune looked down somewhat dejected, Pyrrha placing her head on his shoulder consolingly as the three walked on.

But to Jaune's surprise, Davin's face lit up at the remark.

"I see... so you _can_ help, after all..."

The pair peered at Davin curiously. What was he getting at? As if sensing their question, the young man continued.

"See, yesterday we were all talking about friends outside the school and how they should have a chance at Beacon due to their potential. Well, one in particular. And I found it _terrible_ that the only thing that the one guy is missing just so happens to be an itty bitty _transcript_..." Davin glanced over at the white knight with a smile.

Jaune looked at Pyrrha nervously, she only shrugged. They must've talked about the subject while she had been with Jaune. Davin now got to the point with relish.

"So I got to thinkin', and _now_ I asks meself," the young man adopted a funny accent as he stretched out his arms in the hallway, "'Davin ol' chap, if some bloke _never_ went to a combat school, how's he get into Beacon Academy with _transcripts_?"

Pyrrha was alarmed when she heard the pointed rhetoric, watching her partner nervously stammer as the young man had completely blindsided him with it.

"W-Well, I uh... uh-"

"Look, _first_ off," Davin interrupted in an effort to calm the panicking leader, "I understand that this is some _very_ sensitive information about you. I assure you no one else knows about it..." he paused to look over at Pyrrha with a smirk, "_well_, I'd bet you twenty lien that _she_ does, though. All I told the rest was that I'd find a way to get the guy into Beacon by tomorrow, Friday."

Davin remembered his conversation with the Headmaster well, recalling that the deadline for transfers was now barely 24 hours away. He had planned on this so as not to leave this matter to chance.

"You figured all this out about Jaune and I in three days?" Pyrrha asked somewhat incredulously.

Davin grinned. "About _you_ two, yea. But to be fair, everyone kinda saw it coming. As for the _second _part, that was actually a shot in the dark. But as it turns out, a pretty good one."

Jaune simply looked over to the Spartan with a shrug, looked back at Davin, and reached down to pull out a crumpled twenty lien note from his pocket.

"I'll call in a favor for your friend."

* * *

By dinner, the young man had downloaded the false transcripts on his scroll and had laid it out on the supper table for teams RWBY and JNPR to see. The name Sun Wukong shone at the top with his available start date being the very next day.

"I thought he was at Haven! Doesn't he have his own team or something?" Jaune was surprised to see the name, having only given the contact info to Davin without any questions.

"He _used_ to," Yang began explaining as she looked up from the scroll, "it was Neptune and... two others I can't remember..."

"Scarlet and Sage." Blake interjected, "Something happened earlier this week and unfortunately they had to go their separate ways. We heard that word of the incident at the docks with the White Fang last semester reached their academy but there was confusion with different versions of the story, and as a result they threw Sun out for his involvement." The Fauness-in-disguise ended her explanation with a grimace.

"Wouldn't records of his history at Haven contradict these transcripts?" Weiss wondered out loud.

"Nope! My... contact... has assured it," Davin began, "As I've been told, the originals have already been erased by now, and _this_ transcript will be sent in via an anonymous proxy pinged off of servers from a remote lower-level training school to make the records look legit. It'll be cake." He grinned at his plan.

"Pancakes!?~" Nora sat up suddenly, having nodded off due to boredom.

"No, just cake." Ren replied smiling.

"You really thought this one through, didn't ya? You sound like you've done this before!" Yang teased, nudging the young man on the side.

"Maybe I _have_. My memory ain't the best in the world, hah. But..." he replied grinning with a quick glance to Jaune and back to the scroll, "I do know others who have, too!"

Jaune and Pyrrha only turned to each other and traded knowing smiles.

The couple had come out that day, holding hands as they walked to their breakfast table and down the halls between classes, much to the surprise of the general student populace. Many whispered about it, some in consent and others in rejection, but neither of the two cared anymore.

Jaune was now fully confident in his new relationship and unable to be moved by idle talk, confident not in himself but in _them_. Together. Pyrrha had full faith in her team leader, knowing he'd meet his potential full force and prove any and all nay-sayers wrong.

Though neither of them truly knew how vast said potential would soon prove to be.

Having gone over the plan one more time, Davin now sent the files and closed his scroll, giving Blake the go-ahead to inform the expectant student who was waiting in Vale.

* * *

Sure enough, the next day all students received an announcement during first period. A special assembly was to be held at the arena at noon. Four of said students received a personal message through their scrolls, one of them still fumbling with the new and unfamiliar device.

_Please meet with Miss Goodwitch at the arena after your current period._

Teams RWBY and JNPR met up at the arena before noon to stay together. There was no sign of Davin. The large room filled up as students went up to sit above and around the arena while others along with teams RWBY and JNPR decided to stand on the arena floors, an end of which having been raised up as a platform.

Approaching a single mic on a stand, Glynda Goodwitch formally began the assembly.

The Huntress began with a progress report notated on her tablet about several programs and events during the school year and congratulated the students on having begun their second semester with gusto. She then moved on to reminders about the end of year tournament and several rules and qualifications. After that, she seemed to be about to wrap it up with safety reminders while in campus.

"...and _that_ is why we should never detonate grenade-based weapons in the restrooms."

Yang and Nora fistbumped.

"We regret nothing~"

"And now for a special announcement," Miss Goodwitch continued on stage, "please give your undivided attention to your Headmaster."

The silver-haired man now appeared and approached the mic calmly, cane in one hand and ever-present mug in the other.

"As you all know, this institution has always fostered the tradition of the acceptance of individuals of all walks of life. Rich, poor, human, Faunus... and that being the case, we have created an in-school diversity unlike any other Academy in Remnant. To facilitate said diversity, we've even extended our transfer period so that others with differing circumstances from individual combat schools may decide to join us as well..."

The two teams looked amongst themselves with growing excitement.

"In consequence, _four_ students have joined us throughout this year and we have now created Beacon's final first-year team. I would like to introduce them now."

He stood back as he introduced each student by name, their faces displaying one by one on a large screen above the arena.

"Velvet Scarlatina."

The shy Faunus walked out on stage.

"Neptune Vasilias."

"_WHAT!?_" Seven members of teams RWBY and JNPR nearly shouted as the blue-haired student appeared on stage.

"Davin Rosfield."

The young man stepped out, a hand up to shield his eyes from the light.

"Sun Wukong."

The new student waved at the audience as he made his way to the group of three on stage.

"From this day forward, you will work together as Team Vandas."

The audience gave a small wave of ovation as the four students stood beside the professor, their names on the large screen converging to form the letters VNDS.

"Led by... Davin Rosfield!"

Neptune looked over at Davin and smiled, fistbumping his new leader.

An unexpected second round of applause rose as the leader was announced, his reputation from the literally ground-breaking battle against the heiress having spread around the school. Yang scowled as a few second and third year girls were cheering loud WOOTs at the young man.

"Don't get too jealous, now. He's not even claimed yet," A smug Blake whispered to the simmering brawler.

"Why would I be? I'm looking forward to having plenty more stuff to tease _you_ with, Kitty."

"As if you didn't already," The unamused Faunus replied, sticking her tongue out at her antagonist.

Yang smiled as she turned to look at the leader of the new team, joining the applause just before it died down.

* * *

After the assembly finished, team VNDS joined teams RWBY and JNPR on the arena grounds as students flowed out of the area around them. With the exception of Weiss and Neptune.

"Is he gonna be alright back there?" an amused Davin asked the group as he looked back at the poor guy, both hands up in apology as the Heiress berated him between passing students.

"Meh, he's just receiving the ol' Ice Queen treatment!" Yang quipped as she giggled at the scene behind them.

"Should've told her sooner." Blake casually observed. Both Ruby and Davin bit their lips in remorse. He should've.

"So what in the world is a '_Vandas_' anyway?" Sun piped up, having been reunited with his usual friends, "it sounds awesome, but I have no idea what it is!"

The students each stood still for a moment, scouring their memories for a possible definition.

"I-It's a type of orchid." the students turned to the source of the meek voice in the group. Velvet.

"Usually a dark purple color, t-they're considered one of the most highly evolved of its kind, and the most important florally. I-It's actually depicted right there on his medallion." the heads followed her line of sight to Davin's medallion, which indeed had the intricate orchid engraved on it.

"Hey!" the new leader exclaimed as he perked up in realization, "_that's_ the color of Starkillers when I bend it around and stuff! I _knew_ there had to be a name for that purple-ish color!"

"Yea. But it's still purple, dude." Neptune quickly quipped from behind him, having approached with the only slightly calmed Heiress.

The three groups burst into laughter. Except for Jaune.

His memory had been fuzzy about the events surrounding the incident at the statue that week, and he'd been spending much of his free time trying to remember the ordeal. As if a switch had been flipped, he now remembered everything.

The color he'd seen on the statue was _orchid_.

So many whistles, bells and red flags went off at once in the tired leader's mind that he collapsed to the floor with the stress.

"Jaune?... Jaune!"

The voices of his teammates faded away as he drifted into unconsciousness, Pyrrha barely catching a phrase before he went out like a candle.

"Orchid's... Trace..."

* * *

**_The Valean War  
_**_TPS (c) 2014_


	19. Vol 1-17: The First Mission

**_The First Mission  
_**_-XVII-_

* * *

The wind howled, whistling between every crevice wide enough to let it through. Crisp and chilly, it rustled between the trees, the smell of wild grass thick in the air.

Wait. What?

Jaune opened his eyes. His vision was blocked, half by several blades of grass and half by the hair in his eyes.

'Weird, I don't remember ever letting it grow this long.'

The White Knight instinctively brought up his hand to wipe away his hair. His arm felt heavy, as if it were made of lead. He drew back in surprise when instead of the warm touch of his finger, he felt the cold pressure of steel.

Lifting his head, he saw he was in a meadow, the line of evergreens lining the area all around him.

'Am I in the Emerald Forest? I don't remember the trees being so tall...'

He looked back at his hand, only to see a gauntlet instead. White with gold linings, stained with unknown fluids that made him sick to his stomach when he brought it to his nose. As he sat up, he saw that he was coated in the metal. White armor.

'Where in dust's name _am_ I?'

As he stood up, he could hear a faint ringing sound in the distance, just around the other side of the tree line. He began to walk, feeling his armor clanking against other objects. He looked down.

'Well, at least I've got Crocea Mors with me... _wow_, it looks really nice! No way Pyrrha would go through polishing it for me, I'm gonna have to tell her that she doesn't have to do this for me, even _if _we're... together.' It still made his heart race thinking about it. 'Speaking of which...'

He approached the trees, his instincts warning him to be cautious. The ringing round was getting louder.

"Pyrrha!... Pyrrha!"

The sound became more distinct as he began crossing through the dense foliage. Sounded like...

'Is that... fighting?'

As he reached the other side of the tree line, the ringing condensed into clashing metal and cries. Cries of pain. He saw the scene unfolding in front of him in horror.

War.

An entire valley of clashing forces, flashing auras and gunpowder going off in all directions, facing beasts of Grimm larger than he had ever even learned about in Professor Port's class.

'I really need to pay more attention to him...'

He didn't get much of a chance to lament, however, as a low growling called his attention just outside the corner of his vision. He turned to see what looked like an Ursa Major, but bigger than any he had seen before.

'No way. Is that even _real?_'

But instead of trying to get away, he went at the beast with arms bared, relishing in the opportunity to practice. The Ursa roared as it charged forward.

Just before they met, however, some ancient instinct within him spurred him to put out his weapon and not surround it with his aura, but to surge his aura _into_ it. With a flash of white light, his sword expanded with pure energy, slicing the giant beast clean in half.

He stood in utter shock over the carcass as he looked over his now normal sword when he noticed a pond close by, and walked over to look into it so he could see his reflection. To his surprise, he saw his family crest boldly displayed over his chest, gasping as his gaze drifted up to his face.

He looked like himself, but at the same time couldn't be more different. He looked older, his hair hanging further down than it had ever been, his face and jaw more defined and broader, and stubble growing on his chin.

'What kind of place _is_ this!?'

A loud shout called him out of his panic.

"Cornelius! 'Nelius!"

He looked up at the source of the voice, a man in dark grey armor with long curly black hair that he wore tied back and expressive grey eyes. He looked strangely familiar. But apparently he was generation-confused or something.

"C'mon! We have a straight shot to the ruins! Don't stand there like it's the first time you killed an Ursa Rex, I can't make the final run without you, 'Nelius!"

Jaune momentarily stood speechless, finally finding the words to say as the man began turning away.

"Hey man, Cornelius is my great-gramps!"

The other man didn't hear, he had already begun running in the other direction...

* * *

Jaune woke up in a cold sweat in the dorm. He checked his chin, checked for Pyrrha, and checked the time.

3:30 AM.

Every single time.

Jaune lay in bed, only able to stare at the ceiling as he weathered his dilemma alone, choosing not to burden his team with these strange events going on in his mind.

It had been weeks since the inauguration of team VNDS, and much had happened since then.

Team VNDS had hit the ground running, setting records in the academy not for being the best at anything, but for being good at everything. The four students had gained rapid traction in the arena, and though each of them were formidable alone, together they were third in the Academy only under teams JNPR and RWBY.

As for Jaune, after being exposed to the explosion from Davin's match against Weiss, he continued in his groggy state for days which worried his friends, who begged him to visit the infirmary. He finally consented, but they could find nothing measurably wrong with him and suggested he wait it out. Pyrrha lovingly cared for him day in and day out until he finally recovered.

But that's when the dreams started.

It was progressing. Every time he dreamt, he was getting a little farther in the dream, remembering the sequence of events but forgetting each time that it was a dream... for three nights last week he was stuck against the Ursa and had died each night trying to defeat it, at one point waking up with a blaze of aura that pushed all the furniture to one side of the room, leaving Jaune on one end and three _very_ terrified teammates on the other.

It was like he was actually there in the dream, but he had no idea _why_.

And all he could do now was rest and wait for the break of dawn.

* * *

"Wake up, Mr. Fearless Leader!~"

Jaune's eyes shot open.

"Noraaa. I keep telling you not to do that. You'll give me a heart attack!"

He sat up in bed to see his other two teammates ready and about to leave for breakfast.

"I doubt it!" Pyrrha called from over her shoulder as she straightened out her circlet on her head.

"Besides, _I'm_ still alive, aren't I?" Ren stated briefly. He had a good point.

"Come on, sleepyhead, up we go!" The Spartan grabbed Jaune by his hands, giving him a good morning kiss as she pulled him up to get him going for breakfast.

Jaune reached the breakfast table and couldn't help a silent chuckle upon observing how their little breakfast club had grown. Eight had become twelve, and everyone seemed happier than ever. He and Pyrrha took their seats across from Davin and Yang.

The brawler and the young man had really grown closer, their initial compatibility having budded into a rather adorable friendship. They complemented each other - Davin toned down some of Yang's more eccentric traits, greatly reducing gauntlet-related injuries throughout Beacon, and Yang always had something to maintain Davin's hyperactive mind occupied.

Whenever she wasn't spending time with her sister or Blake, she was usually found with the young man. In short, the two were never bored around each other, and thus, never too far apart.

"So, how are _you_ two this morning?" The knight smugly asked the groggy pair at the table.

"Meh. Wait for Yang to get in a few more cups of jo'."

The couple looked at the blonde brawler as she lazily slurped on her fifth cup of coffee. Pyrrha looked worried.

"What happened to her?"

Davin chuckled before responding to the Spartan.

"I _told_ her she wouldn't handle scroll-messaging 'till 4 am very well."

"Ugh." The blonde grunted sleepily in agreement.

"So early in the morning? Man Vin, that's crazy!" Jaune stated as he sat down. The young man shifted slightly in his seat.

"I uh... I guess I couldn't sleep. We got to talking and time got away from us."

The white knight wondered what Yang would open up about that would keep a conversation going 'till the early morning hours.

Davin was quite surprised himself after Yang opened up about her mother out of the blue the first time as the two were walking down the halls together one weekend afternoon after an impromptu sparring match. Their friendship had really taken off after that; though the young man was barely able to remember much about himself, he still always seemed to know the right thing to say to help out his friend.

Further conversation was interrupted by buzzing scrolls in Jaune's and Davin's pockets. Both turned to see Ruby jump in her seat, interrupting her lively conversation with the rest of team JNPR and Velvet.

The three leaders had just been called to Ozpin's office.

* * *

After breakfast, the three team leaders stood at the center of the golden brown room.

"I'm sure you three are asking yourselves what brings you here today," the silver-haired man began from behind his desk.

"So I will get to the point. Scouts have reported a large gathering of Grimm creatures on the outskirts of Fall Forest."

"A _gathering_? That's weird." Ruby asked, her head cocked to one side in curiosity.

"It would seem so, which is why I am sending several teams to investigate. Teams RWBY and JNPR will take the lead."

Jaune and Ruby looked at each other with a smile of anticipation.

"...and team VNDS, I believe you're ready for your first assignment. You will accompany both teams, providing assistance where necessary. After all, I believe you four have demonstrated enough skill here in the academy to be able to do so." The Professor flashed his signature smirk at the final remark.

"Thank you sir, my team will be excited to hear the news."

"Excellent. We hope the reports are as sensational as they sometimes can be, but we'll need to be cautious as this type of..." a sip of coffee, "_movement_, has yet to be empirically documented among the beasts of Grimm."

The three students felt the weight of the Headmaster's words. He was right.

"We'll be sure to report anything we find out of the ordinary." Jaune cooly replied.

In some odd way, this kind of situation now seemed to put him in his element. A week or so after team VNDS' inception, team JNPR had been cleared for team missions around the forests - mostly population control of the Grimm.

But though the white knight was wrestling with sleeping issues, Jaune's abilities had really taken off, his kill count outstripping his team's as he had begun moving faster and become stronger thanks to his vast quantities of aura. His aura output had become so strong that his training sessions with Pyrrha had now become aura control training, his fighting technique now being quite decent.

The Headmaster trusted his instincts as he set these three teams out to this reconnaissance mission, meant for third or fourth-year students. But they didn't need to know that at this time.

"Excellent. You may each take a dossier from the desk and are then dismissed."

Each student took a small black folder from the desk and took their leave.

* * *

After school, the three teams met up in team VNDS' room, where Davin and Neptune had once roomed. The twelve students crammed themselves around the desk which had been dragged to the center of the room between Davin and Sun's beds for all to see the laid out contents of the dossier.

"_So_, there have been sightings _here, here, here_... and _here_ over the past few days. Going by the reports, large numbers of Grimm have been moving around the area," Jaune pointed out several markings on the map of the forests in the area surrounding Beacon.

"Moving around the area? Have they been causing problems around the villages nearby?" Yang asked as she sat on Davin's bed crosslegged.

"They've never been observed to travel in groups as large as these reports say... they could easily destroy the villages in the forest as they move by, yet do nothing. They only move on," Blake observed as she eyed the contents of another copy, barely containing her curiosity as she shared the files with Yang whom she was sitting next to on the bed.

Ruby looked up from the other side of the desk to speak.

"It's why Ozpin wants three teams to go, there's no way to guess how big the groups are since no one has tried to get close enough to them to find out."

"Looks like it'll still be tough to find out," Neptune observed as well, "there doesn't seem to be any pattern with their movements."

"I know..." The white knight reluctantly agreed, stumped himself.

Davin had remained silent up to this point, studying the points on the map so thoroughly that he didn't even notice when Yang absent-mindedly took one of his pillows and propped her chin on it as she hugged it and sat leaning on Blake to make herself more comfortable.

"Wait a sec..." he finally whispered to himself.

Without another word, the young man disappeared into the closet, rummaging through his things. The brawler adjusted her head on her neighbor's shoulder to get more comfortable.

"Yang." Blake whispered to her partner.

"Yes, Blakey?" A trademark grin over Blake's shoulder as the blonde responded.

"Seriously?"

"What? You're comfy!"

"No I'm not."

"Well that's why I have this pillow! Besides," she surprised Blake by suddenly planting a kiss on her cheek, "MUAH! You know you love it!"

"GAH!" Blake fell back blushing, "Y-You _fiend_!" The others couldn't help but burst out laughing at the interaction. Blake was adorable when upset.

Yang knew the Faunus girl well. It annoyed Blake, sure, but deep down she probably liked it, making it that much more fun! Davin however, having returned from the closet, merely watched the final part of the interaction with a cocked eyebrow.

"Ladies..." he began as he made his way back to the desk, "I don't think anyone wants to see any Bumblebee action tonight."

Sun and Neptune meekly began to raise their hands.

"DON'T EVEN."

The two put them back down. Ruby tried to cover a giggle.

"Hey! And don't even get me started on those White Rose stories going around!" A flushed Blake shot at the scythe-wielder.

"_Ex-cuse_ me!?" Weiss stood up blushing strongly as well.

"_Aaanyways!_..." Davin held his arms out to calm the young women as the other students could barely contain their laughter, "I think I have a way to find out where the Grimm will be tomorrow."

Seriously, too much estrogen on one team. No wonder some of the more... _creative_... students at Beacon had gone on to write fiction about their interactions.

* * *

Somewhere in Beacon, a familiar fox-Faunus clicked _post _on the newest chapter of his Bumblebee/White Rose harem story, leaning back on his chair with hands behind his head and grinning at the title of the steamy fic.

_The Shining Knight's Pain as team RWBY Reacts to Massages of Vermilion_.

It was actually quite popular among the student body.

* * *

Hiding a faint blush, Davin directed everyone's attention to the desk, where he produced a few tools from his school bag.

Seeing her partner seemingly slouch in frustration on the young man's pillow, Blake's eyes narrowed in realization.

"You were trying to see how he'd react!" she whispered angrily. The brawler turned to flash back another grin.

"Well _yea_."

"What, you think he'd get _jealous_ or something?"

"Mayyybe. Those stories _are_ pretty common! Some of the ones of you and me are even pretty good!"

The Faunus girl blushed crimson as she recalled reading a few.

"Well _now_ you'll never know, will you."

They both then turned to see Davin connecting a few dots on the map.

Pyrrha smiled as she sat on the other side of the desk. How would Davin have known to describe the two together as 'Bumblebee' unless he'd _read _those stories too? She snickered to herself, not daring to say anything aloud as the same question would inevitably be directed to the Spartan as well.

'Mutually ensured destruction,' she concluded mentally.

"...so as I was saying," Davin continued at the desk, "we're looking at this all wrong. We're trying to connect the dots _directly_. But what if the connection were a bit different than we imagined?"

Taking out a compass, he connected the dots in a smooth arc. It was a spiral.

"Right there! They're circling something, and closing in by the looks of it!"

"What are they closing in on?" Ren asked as he saw the pattern.

"It looks like... where we picked the chess pieces that determined our teams..." Jaune muttered in realization.

"Okay then! We have an insertion point!," Davin exclaimed happily, "We'll relay the info to Ozpin and set up transportation for tomorrow!"

* * *

The next day, twelve students stood just outside of the ruins, the carrier which brought them humming softly as it flew away in the distance.

"This is the place! We should have eyes on targets any minute now!" Ruby shouted, but suddenly eyeing a small crater.

"Hey Weiss! You fell and landed right here!"

"And Jaune fell right there!" Weiss replied.

"And Pyrrha fell right there!" Jaune continued.

"...ugh. Don't remind me." The red-head sighed.

"And my Ursa broke over there!~" Nora sang.

"Never. AGAIN." Ren shuddered at the memory.

"Uh... sounds like some pretty crazy _stuff_ happened here," Davin observed incredulously.

But before anyone could clarify, an ominous air set down around the group, darkening the trees surrounding the ruins before the growling started. In every direction.

"G-Guys, I got eyes over here! _Lots_ of 'em!" Jaune nervously stated as several red eyes appeared behind the tree line.

"Here too!" Ruby stepped back from the increasingly threatening tree line.

"Same here!" Davin shouted as well. He looked over to the brawler, "Just like old days?"

"Uhh... in the spirit of the old days..." Blake began, but was cut off by the blonde brawler.

"Now that the gang's all here, we can all die together!"

* * *

**_The Valean War  
_**_TPS (c) 2014_


	20. Vol 1-18: The Trace

**_The Trace  
_**_-XVIII-_

* * *

Team VNDS had a very balanced method of fighting as a unit, which was what made them so good. Sun was the martial arts specialist, Neptune was the weapons and munitions expert, Velvet the long range hotshot and resident medic, and Davin was the aura powerhouse at the wheel.

The young man organized their battle formation accordingly, three close-range combat experts surrounding the Healer. She stood with her long range multi-ammo energy bowcaster that she lovingly called Overlord at the ready, which she otherwise kept in a small wooden box slung over her shoulder.

Still, they were yet to test out their formation in battle, and Davin and Velvet had never been in this situation before.

"Guys, we've got _a lot_ of baddies gathering." Davin began nervously.

"What are they waiting for?" Ruby observed as her team stood at the ready.

"Just. Stand. Your. Ground." Jaune asserted as he unsheathed Crocea Mors.

The growling continued as the red eyes seemingly multiplied, then suddenly stopped. Yang loaded her gauntlets.

"Uhh..."

_RAAAAAWR!_

Dozens of Grimm rushed the three groups at once, spurring the twelve to action. Team RWBY kept their combat mostly individual, each girl staying mostly out of each other's way as they dispatched the oncoming Grimm from one side.

Team JNPR paired off, Jaune and Pyrrha tag-teaming beside Nora and Ren, as each knew their partner's weak spots and were covering each other against oncoming threats from another side.

Team VNDS covered the rear for the other teams, the three guys rotating around the healer to take out any Grimm coming around the rear or squeezing between the teams. Mounds of carcasses began forming underneath the twelve students.

"They're all beowolves!" Pyrrha yelled across the small field around the ruins.

"Doesn't make any sense!" Neptune responded as he blasted a few with his energy batons.

How could so many incoming Grimm be of just one species? But just then, teams of beowolves came in, each with an Ursa Major at their backs as they charged the three teams.

"What the-!"

Weiss, Ruby and Blake shot off three incoming beowolves as Yang took out the Ursa with a gauntlet-powered uppercut, and Jaune and Pyrrha swung around each other as they took out three more, Ren launching Nora with Magnihild at the ready to bash in the second Ursa's skull.

Team VNDS were about to strike the third group of Grimm when the three guys saw a green-lit arrow from Overlord tear into the Ursa Major, detonating and all but disintegrating the surrounding beowolves with high-grade acid spilt from the explosion.

The twelve were bent over panting, well kinda, Ren was about to collapse downright. Sun looked over at Velvet.

"Haven't seen that one before. That was pretty chill!"

"T-Thanks! ...I think?"

The guys had been teaching her about slang in their spare time, they hadn't gotten to that one yet. Of all the teams, Nora and Ren stood over the largest mound of dead Grimm, each having known and fought together the longest and were quite the effective team. Impossibly, Nora danced around the top of the mound as if she hadn't spent a drop of energy.

"I'mm queen of the cas-tle!~ I'mm queen of th-_OHMYDUST!_"

The teams barely had time to turn before a giant Ursa with numerous spikes and larger armor plating ripped through the trees and swatted away five students - Pyrrha and all of team RWBY - as if they were flies, each barely having had time to activate their auras.

"PYRRHA!"

Another swat sent Ren and Nora flying off the mound. Davin turned to his team.

"Neptune, Sun! Go get the girls! Velvet! Find Ren and Nora!"

The three split up as the remaining two leaders dodged an earth-shaking two-fist slam from the giant Grimm. As Davin recovered, he saw the beast begin another swat at Velvet as she tried to run away.

"You _sonofa_\- YAHHH!"

Davin whirled a dual-bladed half of Starkillers with all his might at the beast's paw, which spun like a disc through two of the beast's fingers. The giant Ursa roared in pain as Velvet disappeared into the treeline, and to Davin's utter surprise, the disc flew through the air and returned to its owner, stopping its deadly spin just before reaching Davin so he could catch the handle.

'So _that's_ what Ozpin meant! So much for 'unwieldy in battle'!'

He then slung both dual-bladed halves of Starkillers at the beast as it was barely recovering, slicing off the thick armor plating around its midsection.

"Dude! Did you just throw those things like boomerangs!?"

"Heck _yea!_" The young man caught both halves as they returned to him. "Duck!"

The two leaders dodged a low swipe from the beast's good paw.

"Switch!"

Davin transformed Starkillers' light-blades into gauntlets with his aura and leaped over Jaune as the white knight deflected another strike with his shield, permitting the young man to deliver a crushing blow to the Ursa's face mask. The beast reeled back for a moment but recovered and charged the duo with fury.

"Switch!"

Transforming Starkillers into two jagged aura-shields, Davin pinned the swinging arm to a halt in midair long enough for Jaune to slash off the entire paw with one go. The beast stood to full height and roared with the power of nine thousand men.

Davin looked up. "Jeez! That thing is bigger than anything I've ever seen!"

But Jaune had remembered something as he looked down at his sword. HE had seen it before.

"Ursa Rex!"

"_What!?_"

"COVER ME!"

The young man sent two spinning disks of light-blade energy at the Ursa, each slicing at the gigantic arms of the beast and leaving its midsection vulnerable to the charging Knight.

"I hope this works!"

Feeding his Aura _into_ the blade, the field lit up in white light as the blade expanded with pure energy, forcing Davin to shield his eyes.

_CRASH! _

When Davin opened his eyes, he stood awestruck at the sight. The white knight stood over two _halves _of the gigantic beast.

"_Next_ time," Davin began as he picked up both halves of his weapon at his sides, "we start with that trick of yours FIRST!"

The rest of the students from opposite sides of the opening came in as Davin sheathed his weapon, each eyeing Jaune in complete shock as he stood over the giant beast. Not very unlike the grand statue in Beacon's courtyard.

Jaune had become a true warrior. An Arc.

* * *

The twelve students eventually found their way to a nearby village, in need of lodging as they were not fit to travel and needed help sooner than the airships could bring.

"I found a hotel! Three rooms, four people each for the night!" Sun panted heavily as he sprinted back to the teams with the news. In little time, they made it to the lodging place.

The three teams now accommodated in adjacent rooms, Velvet tended to the needs of the other students along with the rest of team VNDS. Jaune and Velvet were in team JNPR's room as Neptune tended to Weiss, Sun to Blake, and Davin between the sisters.

The team had received minimal injuries but was ordered to stay in bed by the professional side of Velvet that had caught everyone off guard; the healer had always seemed to be very shy until this afternoon. The young man stood between Ruby's and Yang's beds with Yang's hands clasped in his.

"Are you _sure_ you'll be ok?" He looked at her with the deepest worry and care in his eyes, which unbeknownst to him always caused her more healing than he could imagine.

"_Yes_, I'll be fine," she responded with a warm smile, "Ruby might be shaken up though, she got hit hardest since she was the closest."

Her sisterly response only highlighted the strong sense of duty she felt towards her little sis, something Davin had come to highly respect about the blonde. Noting the worry in her voice, he knew just how to calm her, and Ruby too.

"Don't you worry about _that_. I got just the thing for our favorite scythe wielder!"

He produced a carton of milk and bag of cookies, the sound of which instantly caused the crimsonette to stir.

"Who- wha- _cookies!?_"

Wiggling his eyebrows at the pleased brawler, he turned to her sister with glee.

"That's right, Rubes! And I got your favorite kind - chocolate chip!"

With an elated squeal, the girl snatched the items and began wolfing down the cookies with nearly inhuman speed. Behind Davin's back, the blonde turned herself on her side on top of the bed and propped herself up on her elbow to watch the young man trying to regulate Ruby's cookie intake. He was really something special.

"Mmf, and don't wurry 'bout Yang," the crimsonette said between cookie munches, "she's a tuff cookie! *munch munch* She'll be lookin' pretty good tomorrow!"

Yang really was. In terms of strength, she surpassed her team as the toughest brawler without a doubt, with an aura and a heart so big that they were only further reasons for Davin to respect Yang. Though at this moment, he agreed with Ruby's statements on more than one level.

"Well, she's _always_ looking pretty good..." Davin wistfully responded a bit too loud before catching his mistake, "Oops."

Yang's eyes positively lit up. "Whaaat? Was that an actual _compliment?_ Mister Rosfield, I do de-_clare!_" she teased the stammering young man, enjoying every moment of it.

"I-I didn't mean it _that_ w-way!"

"Ah, but a slip of the lip ain't no slip of the mind!" she said with a wink as Davin regained his composure enough to fire back at the blonde.

"Whoa! Was that an actual _good_ joke? From Yang? Did I _die_ out there today!?"

He was really the only guy Yang would let get away with that kind of remark without being sent to the infirmary. But before the provoked blonde could launch a rebuttal at Davin, a pillow slammed into the young man's head with considerable force.

"You'll _both_ be dead if I don't get any peace in the next five seconds." Blake _would_ say something like that.

Davin and Yang turned to look at each other, each seeing that the other could barely contain their laughter.

"Whatever you say, Kitty!" the brawler cooed.

"...and I'll need that pillow back."

Davin handed the pillow to Sun.

"You're a lucky man, Wukong. Witty _and_ feisty!"

"I heard that!"

The room bursted into laughter as the Fauness girl hid under her recovered pillow.

* * *

Thankfully, the prediction from the leader of team RWBY had been true. The next day, all the students walked out from the hotel, healed and well-rested. Team VNDS' medic could really do wonders.

"Got a message from Ozpin, airships will meet us here at noon." Jaune replaced his scroll as the rest nodded in agreement.

All-around respect level for the guy had gone up since yesterday after reaching what could be described as no less than boss-level Hunting.

"Well that's in three hours. What do we do in the meantime?" Neptune wondered out loud.

"Mmm... why not a walk through the forest?" Weiss replied with a grin. Everyone turned to look at her. Was she alright?

'Ah.' Davin thought to himself as he saw the blue-haired recipient of said rare grin.

About a half hour later, the group hiked through one of the many trails stretching out of the village in six pairs. Even Ruby had a partner in Velvet, as the two had issues with being shy and awkward with other people which ironically became what made it easy for them to talk to each other.

As the group approached a small clearing, they were greeted with the beautiful sight of a waterfall which cascaded into a stream that cut through the clearing, leaving a large meadow on the far side compared to the smaller one on their side. Each pair got comfortable on the close side of the stream.

Davin and Yang sat back to back, leaning on each other as they passed a bag of berries between each other. Yang had gotten Davin hooked on her favorite snack.

"Hey Vin?" The blonde said, munching on berries.

"What?" The young man held his hand out for more.

"I was thinkin' *munch munch*"

"*munch* About?"

"*gulp* Well, about how pretty today is! The stream, the meadow, the lunch..."

"*gulp* Yea?"

"And..." she nuzzled her back further into the back of her partner, "I was thinkin' it'd be a good day for a date!"

The young man turned his head away to hide a growing blush despite his auburn complexion.

"A w-what?"

The blonde smiled to herself as she knew she had gotten him to blush.

"You know, a _second_ date!"

Of course. _That_ kind of date.

* * *

The two students stood on the other side of the stream, poised for a match as the other ten students watched from the smaller side. Yang shouted out the only rule for the match.

"And don't you dare go easy on me! Cuz if you do, I'll-"

"I know, I _know!_ You'll beat me into a pulp!"

The students could only smile at their classmates as they watched how well the two powerhouses had gotten to know each other.

"Ready?"

"Set!"

"GO!" they both cried in unison.

Having turned Starkillers into their offensive gauntlet form, he swung at Yang with a technique he had learned from the brawler herself as they had begun their own training sessions weeks before.

Of course, she had made the young man swear to never tell anyone about it under penalty of being beat into a pulp.

They were very evenly matched with their similar weapons, each connecting with the other with an occasional body strike, but recovering quickly enough to not lose much ground.

Of course, once Davin began using more of a kickboxing style, as his instincts were always in high gear during a match, be began gaining an upper hand. Yang's only weakness in her technique was defending against a leg-based offense.

However, she had something that her instinct-driven opponent didn't. Her semblance. As he was landing more hits on her, he noticed her hits becoming stronger until he realized her irises turned red, hair in full burn.

He then tried to end it before it was too late with a solid blow to her torso, sending her flying back into the stream. Seeing her hair soaked against the dirty water that was now steaming off her figure, that was the last straw.

She began thinking to herself, 'You may be cute and all, but...'

"NOW 'yer goin' down!"

With unbelievable speed, she dashed to Davin and smashed each half of Starkillers out of his hands before pulling back for the finishing blow.

With a locked aura and from that distance, Davin knew it would kill him. All he could do was recall his limited training from Ren when the stoic had finally decided to show him the basics about his force-stopping semblance, the headmaster's words now coursing through his head.

_By baring your Aura outward, you can deflect harm..._

Davin held out his hand.

A blinding flash of light blew the ten students on their backs, even making some of the trees lose some of their leaves. The students were surprised to see the stream had also practically been blown dry.

But what made ten jaws drop to the floor was the dazzling cloud of energy which was the force of Yang's semblance emanating from her fist, which had stopped still against the hand of the young man.

The cloud of yellowish energy came out and around Davin as if making its way around an invisible forcefield, the brawler and other students staring in shock as the cloud turned purple-ish in color as it converged on Davin's back, _disappearing_ into what looked like...

Jaune gasped in horror.

"What is it, Jaune?" The Spartan asked her pale-faced friend in alarm.

"T-th-! t-th!..."

"Spit it out, man!" Sun quipped.

"_The Trace!_"

Indeed, the cloud of Yang's energy was condensing into what looked like a glowing purple hair-thin line along the lower half of Davin's back. Yet, as soon as the cloud was absorbed entirely, the line disappeared.

"Ren! I did what you said!" Davin exclaimed in excitement.

"_No_, you did something _crazy_. _Again_." An uncharacteristically pointed response from the stoic, who could usually handle any situation pretty well.

"Even by _my_ standards!" Nora added.

"What did you _do_ to me?" Yang asked in wonder, her eyes involuntarily back to their lilac shade.

By stopping her most powerful punch in mid-flight, Davin had not only managed to redirect all of the force and energy into some unknown container, but had also sapped Yang dry of any effect of her semblance, leaving her as if she had never fought in the first place.

The other students surrounded the object of their most recent awe. Blake was the first to actually try and feel around for any indication of the anomaly.

'Curious like a cat', the thought that flashed through Davin's mind as she did this.

Until, finally, to everyone's shock, Blake's hand _dissapeared_.

She gasped in complete surprise, falling back and exhaling in relief as her hand came back with her.

"It's incredible," The feline faunus said to no one in particular.

"Are you lefty or righty?" Ren observed.

"What?"

"Which is your dominant hand?" Jaune clarified.

"I'm ambidextrous."

"Just put your hand behind your back, Vin!" An impatient Blake yelled uncharacteristically but quickly recovered, "Like you're reaching for a blade strapped to your lower back."

Davin did so and immediately heard his teammates gasp in wonder. The hand had disappeared. It didn't feel bad or anything, it just felt cold. But it then hit him, it wasn't _cold_, it just wasn't feeling _anything_. Just like in the dreams that had been plaguing him for the past few weeks.

"What _is_ it?"

Then, from the most unexpected place, Davin's subconscious suddenly supplied an answer.

_Hammerspace_.

* * *

**_The Valean War  
_**_TPS (c) 2014_


	21. Vol 1-19: The Darkness

**_The Darkness  
_**_-XIX-_

* * *

"Hammerspace!?" The students replied all at once.

"What on Remnant is _that_?" A confused Weiss replied, also peeved because she didn't have the slightest clue.

"Sounds like something _I'd_ like!~" Nora added, hugging her beloved Magnihild.

"Wait, wait. Just gimme a sec, it's coming back to me..."

Indeed it was. Davin's memories proved to be like a large drawer full of locked cabinets, but upon the internal suggestion it was as if he had yanked one of said cabinets open, spilling their contents and wealth of information all at once. But it'd be _incredibly_ difficult to explain.

"It's- It's like an extradimensional storage area..."

Eleven deadpanned stares indicated he would need to try harder.

"Um... well, Ruby, you guys watch that show where the guy travels through time in a blue telephone booth, right?"

The four girls ecstatically responded in the affirmative.

"_Well_, aren't there times when he has pulled out impossibly large things from said booth? And Jaune, you guys play that game where the red guys blow up the blue guys, right?"

Most of team JNPR smiled in agreement. Except Ren. Even Sun and Neptune replied in the affirmative with a high-five.

"Aw yeah!"

That game seemed to be the one thing where Ren simply could NOT beat Jaune. Even Pyrrha had gotten a better handle on it than he.

"Well don't those little guys seem to pull out giant grenade-launchers and rifles out of thin air?"

"Ohh..." now all the students nodded in understanding.

"Same principle. Even with energy."

"So... that's your semblance?" Blake wondered out loud.

"I don't think so," Davin began thoughtfully, "Had it been linked to my aura, I would've felt it already, right? I think it's more like a device that I didn't remember I had. Besides, it's impossible for me to have a semblance right now..."

A few raised eyebrows.

"...my aura is _locked_. That's why there were never any physical manifestations of it in my matches."

The students all began exclaiming in surprise at the impossible feat, considering what the young man had done so far. All except Yang, who presently walked up to Davin, hair suddenly burning.

"It's _locked!?_" She exclaimed with a flare of heat.

"Yea..." he replied, taken aback at the sudden outburst.

"So you mean to tell me that _all_ this time, you've been _incapable_ of manifesting your aura, making it damn near _impossible_ to heal yourself fast enough if you ever got _injured_ in a battle!?" The brawler was livid, shoving Davin at every stressed word.

"Yang, he's done pretty well without it so far..." Blake meekly tried to reason with the furious blonde as she flared even hotter.

"They could've _killed_ you, Davin!" She motioned to the large mounds of disintegrating dead Grimm littering the clearing behind her.

"_We_ could've killed you!" She shoved Davin again at the stressed word, then yanked him by the shirt towards her with one arm, the other gauntlet up and threatening to strike.

Instead, she dropped both arms as she dropped her head down as well, looking at the ground.

"_I_... could've killed you..." ver voice was broken, barely a whisper at the last part.

Each word was like a stab at Davin's heart, all he wanted to to was hug her and apologize as he held her tight against him, assuring her that he would be okay, that he'd be more careful.

But as he held his arms up to embrace her, she shoved him one last time before looking at him and then storming off to the forest. Tears were welling in her eyes.

Davin stood cold, frozen to the spot, as he blankly looked at her sister who looked as if she had felt every sensation of what her sister had just gone through. The crimsonette, with watery eyes, simply looked at the young man and nodded her head in the direction her sister had gone.

"You should go after her."

Nodding once at the wise suggestion, Davin left the rest of the students to contemplate on what had just happened as he too disappeared into the woods.

* * *

"Yang!... Yaaang!"

The young man had been searching for several minutes through the woods already, trying to remember what Blake had taught him about tracking over the past few weeks. Though in this case, it wasn't too difficult... all he had to do was follow the charred wood.

He finally found her in a small enclave in the woods, a tiny clearing with only a single log strewn across. She sat on it, sobbing quietly.

"Yang!" he exclaimed, happy to have found her. But the wave of heat that came in response forced him to slow his advance. He didn't care, continuing to walk forward.

"Yang..." his voice was soft and warm as the weight of what had happened hit him again. The heat finally subsided as he took a seat next to the brawler.

"I'm so sorry I didn't tell you before..." he put his arm around her as he said this. She turned in response, burying her head into his shoulder and continuing to sob softly into it.

After a little while she picked her head up and, wiping her tears as best she could, steadied her breath as she looked at the small space before them.

"Do... do you know what this place is?"

The young man looked around quizzically.

"No..."

"This is the spot where I landed in the forest on my initiation, it was a long time ago... I had come to this school, confident in my future and thinking I knew _exactly_ what I wanted. And honestly, aside from my team, I didn't really think I'd need anyone else to help me get there. Sure I have friends, but the thing is, other than my sister, I've never let anyone close enough to actually know that what I'm _really_ trying to avoid is hurting those I care about..."

A knot began to form in the young man's throat as he realized that her ever-present humor had been a mask to such a pained heart all along. The release of these pent-up emotions from the usually positive girl spurred a sudden spontaneous combustion, causing Davin to retract his hand in pain.

"Ugh, _see!?_" she shouted in half anger and half pain as she stood up to avoid injuring the young man any further, fists clenched at her sides, "I _can't _let anyone close to me! I can't _control_ it!" tears were welling up in her eyes again, "And I thought I was cursed to living my life without ever being _close_ to anyone!... But then I met _you_, Vin..."

The anguished young man looked up at the girl he cared so much for as the heat wave subsided for just a moment. She was looking at the ground with her head down, completely broken down as tears fell freely.

"You made it easy to get close to you... you were _different_... you were my _friend_. The first guy I can remember in a while who liked me for _me_, not for what I look like, and who stuck with me even if I can be a little... aggressive... sometimes, heh." She chuckled nervously, her smile quickly fading again.

"...And all this time I was just a careless punch away from killing you. It hurts, Vin... and the way I realize I feel about you _now_... I just don't know what I'd do with myself if that ever happened to you. And these are feelings I don't think I can _control_-"

She didn't get a chance to continue, as she was suddenly locked in an embrace. Davin winced through the pain as the sudden burst of heat surged from the emotional blonde. His unprotected arms were surely singed by this time. But he needed to do this, he needed to do this for her now.

The heat finally subsided as she grabbed him tightly, the pair remaining in the close embrace, words now wholly unnecessary in confessing what they truly felt for each other.

After what seemed an undefinable amount of time, she finally pulled back from him, a flash of joy in her eyes as she looked into his after being struck with an idea.

"I may not ever be able to be as close to you as I'd _like_, but there is _one_ thing I can still do..." she said with a warm smile as she now stood an arm's distance apart from the young man, lifting an arm to touch the side of his head.

"Wha-?"

"Shh. Close your eyes and concentrate." She placed her other hand on Davin's chest, whose heart skipped a beat on contact as he obeyed her command.

"Uhh... okay."

Yang began to glow a soft shade of yellow as Davin began glowing a brilliant orchid. She then began to speak with a voice that almost didn't seem her own in a chant immemorial.

_For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all, infinite in distance and unbound by death... I release your Aura, and by my shoulder protect thee._

When she finished speaking, a huge wave of energy blasted out from their momentarily combined auras, leveling several trees around the enclave as the intensity of the process winded down to a close. Finally, Yang stopped glowing and collapsed, falling into Davin's arms.

"Yang?... Yang!"

"H-Huh?"

She recovered slowly, and as she stood up on her own she looked at how Davin continued glowing, and then pointed at his arms.

"Look."

As the young man looked down, he gasped in surprise as the burns on his glowing arms healed in front of his very eyes. The brawler watched with a wide grin, filled with mirth.

"I used my aura to unlock yours, but the energy around you now is your own!"

And boy did he feel it. It swirled around within him, becoming keener as the thrill of it increased with every deep breath.

Power. Pure, unrestricted _power_. It was nearly intoxicating him on the spot as he even felt his aura swirling around his eyes and-

"Whoa, Vin! Your eyes just turned _grey!_"

That remark snapped him out of it. His irises had just changed color? That was unheard of.

"What?"

"Loo-WHOA!"

Her legs still weak, Yang barely took another step before tumbling forward and finding herself comfortably in Davin's arms again. She looked up at him with a goofy grin as his glowing orchid aura cascaded over her lilac eyes.

"Okay, so I confess that tripping may not have been a _total_ accident..."

They both laughed, but as she straightened out in his embrace, the young man and the brawler found themselves utterly defenseless against the electricity coursing between them. Leaning into each other, they were each letting their eyelids fall shut until Yang suddenly pushed herself back in worry.

"D-Davin, I can't! I'll h-hurt you!"

He already knew he was way past able to contain her now. She could see the confidence and warmth in his expressive grey eyes.

"Yang. I can control it."

That was all she needed. Letting herself fall completely into him with trust, she let her emotions run freely. If this was gonna be her first kiss, she was gonna give it her all.

This, of course, caused another massive heat surge. Which Davin expected. With one hand around her waist and the other caressing the side of her head against her soft skin, his aura pulsed as hers slowly dimmed, making her otherwise scalding proximity harmless.

She felt the movement of power and immediately knew it had worked, and with bright eyes desperately longing to fulfill her sweetest desire, she leaned into him again.

The moment her lips brushed against his, everything else ceased to exist. Her legs having gone numb, she clung to him as she released all the affection she was capable of harboring into him through their kiss, the wave of heat now relentlessly surging within herself.

And for one tantalizingly breath-taking moment, Davin felt the sheer weight of love this blonde brawler had been holding back from him, promising himself that'd he'd always be there for her no matter what. But then he stopped, ending the moment as quickly as it started.

Something was wrong. Something was VERY wrong.

"Yang..."

She pulled back slowly, passion having left her in a dreamy state.

"W-Wha-?" She let out through half-closed lips with a sadness that opened cracks which threatened to break the young man's heart.

"Yang, you need to step back. Right now."

Deeply hurt and fearing she may have done something wrong, she was about to say something before her eyes shot wide open as she suddenly understood his warning.

His aura, which had been cascading beautiful wisps of orchid energy, was now turning black, as if tainted by some dark contaminant. The darkness seeped into his eyes, which became black orbs as he retreated from the terrorized blonde.

"Yang, you _need_ to get awa-AAAAARGH!"

The young man fell on all fours screaming in agony, and Yang watched in horror as the green grass around the young man began to quickly wither and die, the circle of decay spreading out from around him. Suddenly feeling sick, she looked down at her scroll to see that her aura was dropping through the yellow, _fast_.

"_Vin?_" she yelped, choked up by fear.

"AAAGH! -_Get out, Yang!_"

"..._NO!_" Steeling her nerves, the brawler was determined to get the young man she cared about out of this. "I'm NOT leaving you here!"

Thinking fast, the blonde used what strength she had left to pick up the first thing she could grab, the log, and swung it down on the young man as hard as she could. The spread of death stopped.

He was out like a light.

* * *

With her acute hearing, the worried Blake was the first to hear her teammate coming out from the forest.

"Yang! Did you guys see that huge explosion in the fores-_what happened?_" the faunus was shocked to see her collapse to the floor under the weight she carried.

The students surrounded the weakened blonde to give her a hand in carrying the limp young man she had carried out.

"The airship is coming, I'm hailing it over!" Jaune yelled as he frantically entered a message into his scroll as the group could hear an airship in the distance. A minute later, it landed in the meadow, and to the student's further surprise they were met by their Headmaster at the entrance of the lift as it fell to the floor. He didn't have his cane.

"What happen-? Oh dear."

Rushing the students into the airship, the worried Professor had him laid out on a side bench and then turned to the panicked students.

"What happened to him?"

Yang was the first to speak, still panting while trying to recover from the ordeal.

"I-It was his aura..."

Seeing her weakened state, he already knew. She must've been incredibly durable to survive the process.

"You unlocked it." He turned back to the young man, suddenly fearing the worst.

"Miss Scarlatina, would you mind checking what's wrong with Mr. Rosfield. I believe you may need to connect with his aura to find it."

"I-I already tried, P-Professor! I can't connect with it... I-I can't even find it!"

Holding his breath, the silver-haired man reached to open an eyelid, his stomach dropping as he saw the black orb underneath.

"Dear _dust_."

He turned quickly to the heiress, not wasting a single moment.

"Miss Schnee, your dust cartridges, if you will. All of them, please."

Recognizing the volatility that dust was known for when exposed to air, the young heiress protested.

"But Professor-"

"_Now_, please." His stern response was met with six cartridges in his hand only a moment later.

Crushing the cartridges in his hand, to the student's surprise, and infusing the dangerous mixture with his own aura to keep it stable a little longer, he had the young man's armor and shirt removed.

"I am sorry about this, Davin. This is going to hurt."

With an uncharacteristic yell, the Headmaster slammed the mixture into Davin's chest. The young man sat up with a pained gasp on impact and lolled back into his seat unconscious, the darkess in his eyes dissipating as they slowly shut again.

* * *

Davin woke up some time later in the flight, gathering his surroundings as he noticed his head was laying on something too soft to be a seat. Yang's lap. She sat next to the window, an earbud playing music in her ear as she kept her hand on Davin's chest to make sure he was stable.

He looked up at her from her lap as she stared at the window, and couldn't help admiring her beauty as he momentarily let his thoughts run freely in his mind.

'What would you be thinking right now? Why did you risk yourself to save me?...'

The questions replayed themselves over and over again in his mind until he finally remembered their kiss just before he lost control and blacked out.

'Pretty ironic. I ask you to trust me to control your semblance only to end up losing control of mine...'

But as his thoughts continued to ebb and flow, one thing became clear: he would never forget that moment in the forest between them, the sensation of her warm lips against his. And watching her now as the reddening afternoon sun danced across the soft skin of her face, her head lightly bobbing to the music, he knew he wouldn't forget this moment either.

"Hey... how's my Little Sun Dragon holding up?" He smiled weakly as she turned her gaze to look down at her precious friend.

She sighed in relief. And possibly exhaustion. "You scared the crap out of us, Vin. But we're fine... and I'm glad you're okay." She smiled as she began running her hand through his hair. He had been letting it grow a bit longer as of late.

"That was a heck of a second date though, right?"

They each let out a quiet laugh at his statement.

"Don't worry, we can always try again another time." Her smile was warm as she spoke softly so that only them two could hear.

Davin adjusted himself a bit on her lap, confused because he was pretty sure she wasn't talking about sparring.

"Seriously? After what just happen-"

He was interrupted as she bent down to kiss him on his temple, her heat surrounding the two for only a moment before gently dying back down. She was still weak. He looked at her bright lilac eyes as they focused on him once more.

"Yes. You came around to find me, didn't you? You can bet your pretty grey eyes that I won't let you go so easily either!" She grinned as he reached up to caress her cheek.

"Kay. We'll learn to control it together."

The young man had to admit, she was a very good persuader.

He now looked at her earbud, beginning to hold his hand out for the other one. But without even needing him to ask for it, she already had it ready, lightly placing it on his ear. Of the playlist that they had built together, she was listening to their favorite song to enjoy together when normal words weren't enough in the day.

_Catch your breath in your sleep now_

_don't whisper it's too loud. _

_live every beat per moment_

"You know, there's still a lot we need to talk about, right? Those Grimm were there for a reason..." the always pensive young man asked the blonde brawler. She looked down at him again with another smile, as if letting their song speak for her.

_So hard, when it's so far, and you're lost, divided. _

_then the hands break_

_are you scared now? _

_don't be scared now, there's still time_

"Don't worry, Vin, we'll talk about it later..." She reached for his hand and held it tightly, keeping their fingers interlocked as she looked on into the afternoon sky. He rested his head and slowly drifted off to sleep again on her lap.

_It's not hard when it's not far, _

_you're not lost. _

_you'll find it, there's still time_

The muted bass line for the dubstep mix played on as the airship hummed softly, making its way back to Beacon.

* * *

"Are you sure?" the enchantress asked into her long distance communicator.

_'Yes. Both of them are of the Unbalanced. We'll need to plan accordingly.'_

"Well I'll be damned. I guess you were right," The moderately surprised young woman hadn't even noticed that the line had already gone dead. Only moderately surprised, being that genuine surprise was just not in her nature.

"We'll move into position tomorrow." She stated matter-of-factly to her faunus colleague.

The large beast of a Faunus grinned behind his Grimm mask.

* * *

**A/N: For those who asked, the song is The Machinimist remix of the Satellite Empire cover of Time by Hans Zimmer, made famous in the movie Inception ^.^ the cover and the remix are both good, I just think Davin and Yang would lean to the dubsep remix just a tad more ;)**

* * *

**_The Valean War  
_**_TPS (c) 2014_


	22. Vol 1-20: Revelations, Pt 1

**_Revelations, Pt. 1  
_**_-XX-_

* * *

Later that night, the twelve students sat in a circle in the middle of the hallway just outside the Headmaster's office, a serious conversation going on between the Professor and his Huntress colleague inside.

The three teams had safely arrived at Beacon earlier that evening and had been directed to wait outside the Professor's office to be debriefed, the students now deciding to test out the young man's control over his new device as they waited.

Four weapons now lay on the floor, the other eight having been stuffed into the void that the students had been introduced to as 'Hammerspace'.

"Okay!" the young man began, "umm... Crocea Mors, Crescent Rose, then Myrtenaster!"

One by one, Davin pulled out the respective weapons from thin air out of the spatial anomaly behind him, the line glowing orchid as he did so.

"Hmm, how about Magnihild, Ember Celica, then Miló and Akoúo?" The crimsonette challenged as she retrieved her weapon.

"Challenge accepted, Rubes! Okay, here's Magnihild..."

He pulled out the giant hammer victoriously as he handed it over to the orange-haired Nora. It was quite comical really, he now looked like the cartoons that could pull out a large hammer from thin air to bop another one on the head.

"Now Ember Celica..." His smile flipped upside-down as he realized he had pulled out Pyrrha's sword and spear.

"Crap!"

"Hah, you suck!" Yang stuck her tongue out at him as he passed the weapons to the amused Spartan.

"Okay Sunshine, then it looks like you're not getting your bracelets back any time soon!" He flashed a grin at his antagonist.

He was glad that their moment in the forest hadn't changed how they treated each other as friends. He liked that... but maybe not at that moment, considering the cackling sound from the brawler's hair as her strength had recovered with rest.

"Why you-! I'm gonna beat you into a-"

"Don't even think about it. He's still got Gambol Shroud back there."

Davin turned to smile in relief at his cat-eared savior.

"How very nice of you, Blake! Here, have your blade back..." he couldn't help notice the meaningful smirk she gave him when he handed back the ballistic chain scythe.

"Okay 'Sunshine', _now_ you can beat him into a pulp."

"Wha-! Blake I'll get you for this!" he glared at the grinning faunus as he had no choice but to toss back the blonde menace's gauntlets before school property got destroyed, causing the rest of the teams to burst out in laughter.

As the laughter died down, a heavier air settled on the group as the elephant in the room was now refusing to be ignored any longer...

"So, that was some fight out there, wasn't it," Neptune stated, his chuckle having died down as he did.

"I-It was..." the bunny-eared faunus agreed.

"What do you think they were doing out there? It just seemed strange that they waited for us like that..." the Spartan added thoughtfully.

"Not to mention the fact that beowolves never travel in packs that large..."

"Or team up with Ursa's like that." The stoic student added a good point to the conversation.

Jaune was the first to voice what everyone else was already beginning to think.

"It just felt so... planned. As if they were _organized_."

"Impossible!" the heiress quipped, not wanting to believe the harrowing possibility, "Those were creatures of Grimm! The very manifestation of anonymity! T-They're just... mindless... m-monsters!"

Up until that point, the young man had become somewhat detached from the conversation as if he were paying more attention to something else, the heiress' exclamations suddenly bringing him back.

He sighed. "I'd like to think so too. But Lady, just because something's based in anonymity doesn't mean it can't _think_."

The snow-haired girl buried her face in both hands. He was right.

"Guys, there's more to things that get hidden behind the cover of anonymity..." Davin continued as he made his point, "Who made dust? Who taught people to use their auras? Without these anonymous individuals, mankind would've died out long ago... point is, some of the greatest intelligence known lies behind the cover of anonymity."

"...and so do some of the greatest evils, too." the students turned in surprise to face the unexpected source of wise words. Nora.

It was grim outlook to a situation that no one in the group could control, setting a despondent mood in the hallway.

"Heh, _thousands_ of years that man has roamed these kingdoms and these questions aren't asked until _now,_" Ren suddenly remarked off-handedly, the unexpected chuckle and light-hearted admission from the stoic enough to liven the mood at least a bit as the Headmaster's door finally swung open.

"You may all come in now," the Huntress waved them in as she guided the three teams through the door.

* * *

"Teams of Beowolves _and_ Ursae?" the Headmaster was beginning to have trouble masking his emotions.

The students had explained the story of the attack and the apparent organization of the creatures of Grimm, much to the Professor's growing concern.

"Yeah," the crimsonette continued, "and then there was that super-sized Ursa that ambushed us at the end of it." She involuntarily winced as she recalled the memory.

"Ursa Rex." Jaune corrected.

At that remark, the Headmaster and Huntress narrowed their eyes at the white knight.

"I'm sorry, Mister Arc, would you mind telling us where you learned that term?" the Huntress asked briskly.

"I... uh... read it in a book once?"

The silver-haired man sat at his desk with his arms up and resting his chin on his clasped hands, the cold coffee mug at his side having been long forgotten. He adjusted his spectacles as he chose to overlook the obvious lie.

"_Ursae Rex_... are a species which have gone undocumented since the Great War. Extraordinarily little is known about them."

"Well they don't die easy, we know _that_ much," the young man observed, "but thankfully, Arc here sliced through it like butter with his energy sword."

Two raised eyebrows were directed at the white knight from the pair of teachers.

"An _energy_ swo-?"

"Sir, why were you in that airship?"

Everyone turned to the young team leader as she interrupted the Headmaster. He unwittingly shifted in his seat.

"Well... I suppose that was going to be the main point of this debriefing in the first place, though that part was going to be held in _private_ wit-"

"It was about _me_, wasn't it," the young man interrupted a second time, "I could hear you and Miss Goodwitch talking about me in here. What's wrong with me?"

Davin was quickly surrounded by quizzical stares even from Blake, since not even _her_ faunus-enhanced hearing could pierce the thick walls to the office.

"Mister Rosfield, what happened in the forest?" Glynda tried her best to keep her composure as she questioned the young man. And he noticed.

Was that... fear... in her eyes?

"Yang, uh, unlocked my aura."

"A process that could've killed Miss Xiao Long, I assure you. With your aura levels even in its unlocked state, it's a wonder that she wasn't entirely drained of hers when she unlocked yours."

Jaune turned to Pyrrha as she said this, recalling her state after his aura was unlocked as well. The Spartan looked down blushing.

"And we are already aware of what she did, Davin, and I'm sure you're as much _grateful_ as Miss Xiao Long was _willing_," Ozpin began, cutting into the conversation to shelter him from a possible rant from his colleague, "But what we are referring to is... what happened _after_ that?"

Davin was now visibly shifting his weight from foot to foot nervously.

"Uh... sir?"

"I felt the force of the disturbance all the way from here at the Academy. Many of us did. I'm glad I came on the fastest airship headed in your direction as soon as I did."

"_Well_, it would seem that _you_ would know more about it than _he_ did, considering that _you_ seemed to know exactly what to do when you saw him like that!" It was now Yang who was cutting into the conversation, frustrated with the ambiguity of it all.

"So it would _seem_..." The Headmaster replied, causing the young man to twitched at the underlying implication, "So tell me, Mister Rosfield, were you aware of it before?"

"Aware of _what,_" Davin replied sternly.

Yang's frustration was influencing the young man's responses as he realized that her action of unlocking his aura had connected them in deeper ways than he would've imagined.

"That _YOU_ were of the Unbalanced," The Professor stated firmly as he got up from behind the desk, slamming his hand on it at the stressed word.

The accusation was the last straw in all this mess, sending Davin over the edge. His aura now began to flaring out, cascading the bright orchid energy around the office.

"That _I_ was aware? Did it _seem_ like I was 'aware' before all this!? I CAN BARELY REMEMBER A THING ABOUT MYSELF FROM MORE THAN A FEW WEEKS AGO! _DO I SEEM ANY MORE 'AWARE' NOW!?_"

His growling outburst became deeper and barely human as his aura began to turn black around him as he spoke, his eyes filling with panic before the aural darkness seeped into them.

"AAAAARGH!"

"Davin!" the suddenly wide-eyed Headmaster yelled, quickly approaching the young man's side as the students backed up to the rear of the office in terror, "You need to control it NOW!"

The Huntress prepared her wand to strike as the dark aura whipped around the room with a gale-force howl. The silver-haired man held her back, if only for a little longer.

"Davin, it may be powerful, but it is still _your_ Aura! It is just like your weapon, fight it off and shut it DOWN!" The Headmaster grunted as he fell to the effects of the young man's curse.

"Ozpin!" Glynda managed to pull the Professor back from the screaming young man before she could no longer stand. The darkness was already warping the wood, sapping the energy of everyone in the room too quickly for them to get away.

'MUST...CONTROL...THIS!...'

Davin's thoughts were being whipped around like a hurricane in his mind as he fell to his knees in agony. The others were all backed up against the terrarium, there was no way out.

But how could he possibly relax enough to gain the advantage over this... this _darkness_... which was threatening to consume everything around him?

"VIIIN!" that voice...

'YANG!'

With a soul-wrenching cry, Davin held every fiber in his being still, _willing_ his internal forces to fall under his command. He couldn't let himself do this to the only people he cared for and cared for him... not to the friends he held dear. Not to _Yang_.

As the image of Yang on the airship with her peaceful face and serene demeanor as she stared out the window soothed his mind, he felt the rage in him begin to settle, the howling winds in the room quiet down.

His breathing evening out, he finally opened his eyes as the darkness dissipated from them and the aura surrounding him.

Davin had figured out how to control his semblance.

"Yang!" He got up and ran to the brawler as the gasping students and faculty regained consciousness.

"Y-You did it, Vin..." she smiled weakly as she opened her eyes.

As he picked her up, he saw Jaune standing as well, picking up his team and the others. To Davin's surprise, Jaune seemed... okay.

Once the debilitating effects of the dark aura had set in, no one (including Jaune) had noticed Jaune's aura begin to flash white, protecting the white knight from the worst of it.

* * *

"Miss Scarlatina," the Headmaster began with some difficulty after a minute or so, supporting himself on the discolored desk, "if you will please escort the remaining students to the infirmary, they will need to be looked after. Davin, if you could please stay for a moment... and you as well, Mister Arc."

The two leaders complied as the quick-healing VNDS member escorted her pained peers to the infirmary, except for two.

"I'd like to stay here with Davin." Yang.

"And I with Jaune." Pyrrha took a glance at the brawler, each young woman reflecting the determination in the eyes of the other.

Without the strength to argue needlessly any further, the Headmaster complied as the Huntress guided him to his seat. They both were recovering quite quickly as Miss Goodwitch had just regained the strength to cast a meager healing glyph around them with her riding crop.

"What _was_ that?" Jaune asked, clearly the most unaffected by the ordeal aside from Davin.

"_That_..." Miss Goodwitch began, still breathing heavily, "was Mister Rosfield's semblance."

"His semblance?" Pyrrha echoed incredulously.

"Yes." Ozpin now seemed fully recovered by whichever means he and Glynda had used. "Mister Rosfield has the ability to draw power, and life, from any living organism. In the case of humans, this would also include our Auras."

"How?" Yang looked up at Davin from beside him, worried for him as she took his hand with hers.

Clearing his throat, the young man began.

"My aura is different from that of most. Though the aura of each of you in this room is very strong, mine is _unbalanced_. I have more of one type of energy than the other, giving me nearly.. limitless.. power, as Professor Ozpin once told me..." the eyes in the room were riveted to the young man as he continued.

"But what I _didn't_ know is that a side effect of this power is some kind of innate need, a _hunger_, that drives me to feed on any living energy within reach."

"A hunger which would've consumed you and everything around you had you not learned to control it," The Headmaster stated as he watched at the young man with a solemn gaze.

The young man merely looked down at the floor, his partner resting her head on his shoulder in consolation, which raised a few eyebrows. That's not the kind of thing Yang normally did.

"_But_..." the Professor began pointedly, clearing his throat to get the pair's attention once again, "that is not the reason I've kept you behind."

The students looked at the Huntress and Headmaster in confusion, the pair of the adults wearing the same meaningful frown.

"There is _another_ of the Unbalanced in this room." A few exclamations from the students arose as both adults' gazes drifted towards the white knight.

"Wha-! _Me!?_"

"Yes, Mister Arc," Glynda began, "we've been sure about you since the beginning. In the forest, Professor Ozpin sensed it when Miss Nikos unlocked _your_ aura during initiation, and I was convinced as well when I felt it in Fall Forest... I eventually heard of an Ursa being involved in the incident... as well as a certain Cardin Winchester."

Jaune chuckled nervously, his partner flushing red at the memory.

"As you may have noticed, Mister Arc, your aura use has improved by leaps and bounds since its unlocking, partly because it's preparing to manifest _your_ semblance, and partly due to the presence of Mister Rosfield."

Jaune now scratched the back of his head, two questions having immediately sprung to his mind.

"_My_ semblance?" There goes the first.

"Yes, though it seems that the manifestation of your semblance has been somewhat delayed, it may be due to the sheer _quantity_ of aura you possess. We can only imagine how powerful it may prove to be, but judging by your current progress I doubt we'll be asking ourselves for much longer."

"And what do _I_ have to do with him?" The young man cut in, asking the white knight's second question for him, "and Professor, you mentioned once that there are only ever one or two that roam Remnant, are we connected somehow?"

"Indeed you both are, Davin. Thankfully, it seems that nature has a way of keeping these anomalies to a minimum. Usually only one exists at a time, living their life and passing away like the rest of us as most never manage to have their auras unlocked. _But_, it seems that whenever two exist, they are of the opposing types, and they have a habit of... finding each other." He glanced pointedly between both leaders as if proving his point.

"Do they? When's the last time it happened?"

The Headmaster and Huntress traded a knowing glance before the Headmaster responded.

"The last time was at the beginning of The Great War. The two warriors were the reason we ultimately won the war, vanquishing the commander of the Grimm forces."

"..._Commander!?_" The four students exclaimed in unison.

"_Yes_." The silver-haired man's eyes closed, brows furrowing as he readied himself for the tale he was about to tell.

* * *

**_The Valean War  
_**_TPS (c) 2014_


	23. Vol 1-21: Revelations, Pt 2

**_Revelations, Pt. 2  
_**_-XXI-_

* * *

_Legend tells of a leader by the name of Tyranus who lived during mankind's earliest days, when the presence of Aura was first discovered. He was fascinated with the power that an Aura could harbor, and with a small group of loyal subordinates learned of the dual nature of the substance of every Aura: light and dark energy. _

_However, fascination turned to obsession as he and his followers delved deeper into the nature of dark energy itself, believing it to be a more efficient weapon against the mounting forces of Grimm that threatened our way of life. They were terribly mistaken._

_Consumed by the dark energy, the leader and his few followers turned on their comrades. There were many casualties due to their dramatically increased power, but their own armies were finally able to drive them out into the forests full of Grimm. All their research was either lost or destroyed._

_They were thought to have been destroyed among the Grimm, but after centuries it was proven otherwise when to the horror of every kingdom the leader's team returned, the immense amount of energy having kept them alive and disfigured them into the forms of the beasts they were once sworn to destroy, and now with the hordes of Grimm _under_ their control... so began The Great War._

* * *

The four teens in the room stood speechless, the Huntress standing beside the solemn Headmaster with a grieved air. Jaune was the first to break the silence.

"And why were we never taught about this?"

"Because _some_ evils brought about by the Great War were too terrible to pass down as legends to future generations," the Huntress began.

"With the understanding of human Aura along with the power of dark energy, the new commanders of the Grimm forces were granted by their leader the ability to _manipulate_ the aura in others, turning many innocents against each other, or worse, into grotesque forms of the dark beings themselves. The stronger the aura of the victim, the more potent the turning."

"The _stronger_ the Aura?" Pyrrha echoed in response to the unknown subject.

"Yes Miss Nikos, an Aura is strengthened when one knows how to use it accordingly. In a time where such deep knowledge of Aura and arms of war had granted the Hunters and Huntresses amazing powers and advanced weaponry, mass turning nearly gave the Grimm forces victory. This is why certain advanced Aura abilities and Aura-powered weaponry have all but fallen into disuse after the war."

"So how was the war won?" Yang asked in response.

"It was only due to the efforts of the two warriors of the Unbalanced, humans with naturally greater amounts of either dark or light energy within their Aura, that the dark leader was cast away into an extra-dimensional prison, releasing the turned of their bonds and permitting us to gain victory."

Glynda paused as she noticed the students' faces suddenly turn pale.

"Y-You mean, like this one?"

The two adults visibly jumped back as Davin pulled Starkillers out of thin air, the Trace glowing briefly as it did so.

"Impossible..." Ozpin whispered, "How did you come into possession of a Trace device?"

"I-I have no idea. I _literally_ don't remember. I don't even know how it can physically _exist_."

Glynda was about to begin speaking when Ozpin held out a hand to hold her back.

"There may be an explanation for that. We were told that the first Trace device was in fact created by the dark leader ages ago, who used the dark energy's insatiable pull of power to turn it against itself, creating a sort of singularity. This caused a rift through time and space which could be used as an infinitely large storage space."

"Hammerspace..." Davin mentioned as he remembered his internal definition for it.

"Exactly. However, during the Great War, it turned out that the dark one of the Unbalanced managed to steal and possibly modify the anomaly, but any other uses were unable to be explored as the Trace device was lost at the end of the war, along with its possessor."

"The only information that _did_ get obtained from exposure to the Trace..." Miss Goodwitch added with resolution, "was that anyone exposed to its unsecured open form were affected by the... effects... of dark energy, along with memory lapses proportional to the amount of time spent near or within the void." The student stared at the Huntress in muted shock.

"Mister Rosfield," Ozpin now resumed thoughtfully, "can you tell us where you came from?"

Davin could only look down at the floor as he pondered at what his situation could possibly mean.

"N-No, sir. I do not know."

"Just as I feared," The Professor stated, wholly unsure of what to make of the events which had just transpired, "We do not know how the device works, and it may be that only _your_ memory may hold the key to unlocking your connection to it. In the mean time, I suggest you protect it with your life, and continue to work on exercising control over your semblance. With certain recent events, I recommend you and your team exercise the utmost caution as I can assure you that your memory will not be lost forever."

The silver-haired Professor now turned to Jaune, exhaustion evident on the man's face.

"Mister Arc, I get the feeling that you will be equally as necessary in unravelling this connection as well. Trust your instincts, follow your heart, and lead your team like the Arc that you have proved to be. Your great-great-grandfather would be proud." The white knight and his partner were beaming as the Headmaster finished his words of encouragement.

"Very well," Miss Goodwitch began as the four students stood with renewed courage by the words directed to the white knight, "It is late, and doubtlessly you'll need rest. You may use whatever discretion you deem necessary in revealing this information to your teams. However, none of this may be repeated to any outside party. You may be dismissed."

As the two pairs of students stepped out of the office, Miss Goodwitch couldn't help smiling as she observed each couple holding hands as they exited.

"You know, it's just like the saying goes," she commented while commencing repairs on the warped office, "behind every great man is an even greater and stronger Huntress."

She grinned as she looked over at the Headmaster, who looked back up at her with a knowing smile.

Several yards down the hall outside, Davin grinned. He couldn't agree more.

* * *

Davin and Yang walked down the hallway, falling further behind Jaune and his partner. This was not by chance. The young man turned to his blonde partner at his side around whose shoulder he held an arm while she had hers wrapped around his waist.

"You know, I never got to say thank you for what you did for me earlier today..."

"Hmm? Yes you did, I'm still feeling weak from it..." Yang was trying to be funny even in her currently groggy state, pretending to pucker her lips in indication as to what she meant, something Davin couldn't help finding adorable.

"Yea, I'm sorry about that."

"Don't beat yourself up about it... that's _my_ job!"

Davin smiled, "What can I say? I guess I have a very... _draining_... personality?"

Yang shut her eyes smiling as she held back a laugh.

"That... was TERRIBLE! You know you really... _suck_... at puns, right?"

"Oh, no you _didn't!_"

Yang yelped and squirmed, giggling as Davin tickled her bare midsection in retaliation. She nudged him playfully as he ended his friendly assault, enjoying the moment as she spoke up again.

"No fair! But still, I love it when you're feisty!"

"I guess you must be rubbing off on me then." He stuck his tongue out at her in jest.

"Doesn't mean I won't beat you into a pulp on a moment's notice!" She grinned with a gauntlet held up. Davin let out a small chuckle before pulling her in and putting an arm around her again.

"Don't worry Hot Stuff, one day you'll take off your glasses and those amazingly scary gauntlets of yours and realize you were a big lovable softie the entire time!"

She raised an eyebrow in curiosity, "I don't wear glasses."

"Then you're already halfway there." Davin grinned at her as he had responded without missing a beat.

The blonde brawler could only bite her lip as she smiled, silently making a decision as she continued walking next to the young man, _her_ young man.

"_So_... Ozpin said you'd need to practice controlling your semblance, right?"

Davin responded, oblivious to her ulterior motive, "Yea."

"Any idea _how_ you're gonna do it yet?" A door was at the corner of the hall.

"No, not yet. I'll figure it out though."

"_Well_, I need to gain control over my outbursts too!" She began as the pair neared the door, fighting down the growing heat surge from within, "and you said on the airship we should figure it out together!"

"Yeaaa..." Davin continued with an eyebrow raised as the brawler stopped in front of the door.

"And I think I have a good idea _how_!"

"Wha-?"

He couldn't finish the question as the brawler pulled him in for a kiss, doing her best to control the heat surge as it came out. After several moments, Yang couldn't tell whether it was she who was controlling her heat output or Davin controlling it for her. She honestly didn't care anymore.

However, the faint sound of scurrying paws around the corner brought Davin out of his brawler-induced ecstasy.

"Y-Yang," the young man pulled back, panting, "we're in a _hallway!_"

"Ooh, good point! We need a better place to _practice!_" Yang reached back for the door lock behind her with an ear-to-ear grin, the pair tumbling into an empty dorm and landing on the floor.

Indeed they were right. A lone fox-Faunus stealthily raced away to his room with notepad in hand, a great idea in mind for the next chapter to his increasingly popular fic.

"H-How did you know this would be empt-?" Davin asked as he started picking himself up, stopping himself upon realizing it must've been Velvet's old dorm. "Oh you sly little she-devil! Fine, you win!" Shutting the door with his foot, he dropped back down to her waiting lips to resume their 'practice'.

Needless to say, the pair gor back to perfecting their 'passionate soul-bonding make-out sessions', as Yang playfully described it, for the next few hours of the night.

* * *

The crisp wind and smell of grassy meadow. The white armor. The tree line. The valley of war. The giant Grimm.

All were playing over again in quick succession inside the dream as the white knight brought himself to the pond once more. Long hair, broad face, stubbly chin. A loud shout rang through the air.

"Cornelius! 'Nelius!" The same man in dark grey armor. "C'mon! We have a straight shot to the ruins! Don't stand there like it's the first time you killed an Ursa Rex, I can't make the final run without you 'Nelius!"

Jaune looked around and at the two halves of the dead Grimm, a vague feeling of deja vu crossing through his mind. But his attention was drawn back to what the man in front of him had said. Apparently he was generation-confused or something.

"Hey man, Cornelius was my great-great-gramps!"

The other man didn't hear, he had already begun running in the other direction.

With a grunt of frustration, the white knight reached behind to scratch the back of his head, unexpectedly finding a battle hood underneath his armor and putting it on as he went after the stranger through the heat of the battle.

As Jaune ran through the battle, Jaune couldn't help noticing that a few things were out of place... _extraordinary_... but out of place. Sure he had noticed that the Grimm were enormous, but to his surprise, he saw Hunters and Huntresses all around him leaping incredible distances through the air to land crushing blows to the larger enemies. A large amount of them were wielding weapons similar to Starkillers.

'Whoa! Another huge jump! Huh, I wonder what happened to all of those people and their techniques, not to mention the weapons... wait what's that?'

But what caused Jaune to slow down his pace was when he noticed what seemed to be two warriors fighting... each other. His anger suddenly boiled over when he saw the crazed Hunter maniacally slice through the young Huntress who opposed him with a large battle axe...

With black orbs for eyes, they suddenly flashed an eerie red when the Hunter caught sight of Jaune and haphazardly advanced towards the white knight. The barely human form had patches of jet-black fur sprouting around his body, a few bones protruding in spikes as if they were slowly transforming into something else.

'He looks like a Grimm!'

"Hey!" the panicked knight called out, hoping to appeal to whatever humanity that thing may still have had, "There's something seriously wrong with you! You need to get help!"

Stopping in front of Jaune, the mutated Hunter merely paused for a moment before lifting his axe with an inhuman cry when-

_Zzzzshhhh_

An energy blade in the shape of a broadsword ran through the Hunter's chest, who dropped to the floor along with his axe, revealing Jaune's grey-armored savior behind the dead warrior.

"I know, I _know!_ You can thank me later, 'Nelius! Let's _go_."

Resuming his pursuit of the man in dark-grey armor, the two Hunters fighting the various creatures they encountered en route together, they found a reprieve in the battle as they finally reached the ruins where a pair of two younger warriors approached them. The strangely familiar young Hunter and Huntress smiled when they saw Jaune.

"Well would you get a load o' _that!_" The man joyfully slapped the shoulder of the younger Hunter, "surviving the war together and not a single hair out o' place on your pretty little heads! Nice to have the team back together again!" The younger pair blushed slightly at the remark. Each were brunette.

"It was thanks to your idea of forming a team that we've come this far," The young Huntress stated cooly behind a pair of thin rectangular glasses.

But their team reunion was cut short when the young Hunter lifted his gaze, eyes widening for only a moment.

"Incoming."

Before the team could react, the young Hunter held out his weapon, some sort of cane... a _cane? _Couldn't be... with a silver handle at the end that served as a trigger as he discharged an aura-projected chain which sliced through an incoming pack of Ursae. And to Jaune's surprise, the now-hooded Huntress pulled out a riding crop from her boot to impale another half-dozen Ursae with jagged ice crystals.

"Hey you two, leave us a few to take down!" The Hunter powered up his energy broadsword when a deafening roar tore through the air above them.

"Oh? Looks like it's time for you to do your thing, 'Nelius!" Jaune followed the man's gaze upward to the pack of Beowolf Majors towering above the team's rear side.

As Jaune reached down for Crocea Mors he didn't find it, realizing in horror that he must have dropped it just before reaching the ruins.

"Why does this only happen to _me!?_"

A pair of snapping jaws already on its way, instinct took over the white knight's actions as he instinctively pulsed out his aura in the form a large white barrier to deflect the attack, a large Aura-projection of Crocea Mors suddenly appearing in his other hand.

"Now _this'll_ be fun!"

He began deftly making his way through the pack, slicing through several Beowolves as he pulsed out his aura to block incoming attacks and made his way up a small rock outcropping near the edge of the ruins to fend off the remaining Grimm. As he sliced through what seemed to be the last one, another ambushed him from behind, leaving him virtually no time to react when-

_SPLAT._

The last Beowolf tumbled forward to the bottom of the outcropping, Jaune turning to see the hooded Huntress panting as she put down a large double-sided axe which was clearly too big to be hers. She looked at the white knight with a smirk.

"Ursa ate my weapon. Had to improvise."

"That you did. But you hit it with the blunt end of the axe. Seems like it'll still do the trick though." He looked over at the dying Grimm on the floor.

"Of course. We wouldn't want you to be gobbled up by a Beowolf, now, would we?" They both chuckled as she leaned on the axe below Jaune to catch her breath.

"Still, it's this wretched _hood_ in my way. I think I would be better off with a cape." She smiled warmly at the white knight as she said this in jest.

"That _would_ be a nice look for you," Jaune agreed.

The other two of their team rounded the corner to find Jaune and his teammate, the grey-eyed man stopping to contemplate the scene before him with mirth.

"This I tell you, Arc, that you shall always be remembered for this, right here, right now!" The younger Hunter nodded in whole-hearted agreement.

The white knight thrust out his aura-projected sword in one hand triumphantly as the Huntress stood propping herself up on her second-hand axe just below him on the rocky outcropping, the Beowulf on the floor before them reaching out with its final dying growl.

'_Wait a second..._' the revelation suddenly dawning on Jaune, 'this is the STATUE at Beacon! I'm in... I'm in...'

Lucidity now flooding the white knight, he realized that this was never just a dream. The revelation was short-lived, however, when suddenly-

"AAARGH!" the Huntress now found herself thrown to the floor, the young Hunter racing to her side.

_Kr-SQUISH._

Jaune looked down to see five elongated black claws protruding from his chest through his armor. Those were from no ordinary Grimm. But instead of waking up, he could already feel himself fading as he tried to turn to see his executioner.

"NOOO!" the man in dark grey sped towards the white knight in a swirl of black aura as an orchid haze seemed to surround Jaune's dying form. But now stopping, the Hunter dodged a clawed attack which almost seemed to belong to a _humanoid_ arm, some sort of substance seeping into his darkening black eyes.

'H-Haven't I seen that somewhere before?...'

With his arms stretched out, he seemed to be mentally _pulling_ the orchid haze towards himself and away from the executioner, and the beast didn't seem pleased. With Jaune still impaled, _three_ more arms shot out at the man in dark grey, but it was too late.

Seizing hold of the device, the Hunter pulled at its impossibly thin opening, crying out as he did so and unleashing a powerful plume of dark energy, covering their nearby pair of young warrior teammates in so much of the substance that their hair began to change color.

One silver. And the other, platinum blonde.

"INTO THE VOID WE GO, CURSED COMMANDER!" and with a final effort, Jaune's grey-eyed partner tackled the the beast into the opening, taking the impaled Arc with them into the black.

Black. So much nothing. Almost peaceful... Jaune closed his eyes.

* * *

Jaune woke up with a cold sweat in the dorm, frantically looking around as he checked his chin, checked for Pyrrha, and checked the time.

3:30 AM.

Every single time.

This time, however, he realized that the force of his aura had partially melted his entire corner of the room, his bed steaming from the dissipating heat. This time, Jaune remembered every detail of his dream.

It _was_ a memory, after all.

The white knight let his head fall back on his pillow as a million questions swirled around in his mind.

'How is this even _possible?_'

* * *

Somewhere in Beacon, down several flights of stairs, a young man also sat up awake in another dorm bed with a peacefully sleeping blonde figure huddled up beside him above the sheets. His hand softly stroked her plentiful golden locks as he took care not to cause her to stir.

The expression on his face, however, was anything but peaceful, his grim expression the result of a certain revelation that brought him one large step closer to remembering where he came from.

* * *

**_The Valean War  
_**_TPS (c) 2014_


	24. Vol 1-22: The Bonds We Make

_**The Bonds We Make**  
-XXII-_

* * *

Davin awoke the next morning to the buzzing of his scroll.

Sleepily trying to reach for his device, he realized it was nearly impossible as his arm had lost all feeling under the weight of a certain blonde brawler who slept beside him. Not that anything especially saucy had happened the night before.

Even after she removed her pleated leather skirt-belt with the excuse that it was making her 'uncomfortable', leaving her in only her black short-shorts before sitting on Davin's lap and resuming their practice with 'aura control'.

But after their special practice session, they had simply snuggled into a corner of the empty dorm on top of one of the beds, whispering sweet nothings into each other's ears. Sure, there may have been a roaming hand involved, but Davin was not the perpetrator.

Yang had always had a thing for toned abs. She just couldn't help herself now that she had permission to mess with _his_... not that she would've waited for permission from him anyways.

The scroll began to buzz again, this time causing the gorgeous brawler to stir without realizing that she and Davin had unwittingly fallen asleep on each other the night before. Sitting up straighter, she yawned and stretched her arms out before accidentally smacking the young man in the face.

"_Ow_. You've got company, babe."

Yang turned around in surprise to see the person who had said this. Blinking a few more times, it seemed to take a few moments for her groggy mind to grasp where she was and who she was with. She was _definitely_ not a morning person.

"_Your_ fault, Vin. You got in my way!"

With another yawn, she scooted over to the end of the bed to get up. To respond to the cheeky answer, Davin boldly replied with a cheeky one of his own, playfully backhandedly spanking the groggy blonde as she got out of bed.

Instead of sending her attacker through the wall, she simply stood with her back to the young man and rubbed at the point of impact with a mock pained look on her face.

"Owww... so _that's_ how this is gonna be?" She smirked as a much better way of retaliation entered her mind when she noticed a blushing Davin's gaze mometarily drift downwards. He had forgotten that she wasn't wearing her skirt...

"You know, Vin," she began as she pulled him out of bed with ease, "you're the first guy I meet whose end goal on the first night he spends hanging out with me is to sleep _with_ me instead of trying to _sleep _with me..." she wiggled her eyebrows to reinforce the implications of her choice of words.

Her retaliation receiving its desired response, Davin was quickly reduced to a furiously blushing, stammering hot mess.

"I-I um... uh, well I w-wouldn't!... I mean- u-uh maybe if... um... uhh... thanks?..."

She moved closer to him, ending the torture as she gently tiptoed with her hands behind her back to give him a quick kiss.

"I'm just teasing. Good morning," she said softly in an almost secuctive tone as she returned to her normal height without breaking eye contact with the flushed young man.

'She'd _never_ let me off the hook that easily,' Davin thought to himself as she momentarily smirked at him, biting her lip.

Pulling her mane of hair to her front so as to leave no impediment to the view from behind, she turned around, and while gently playing with her hair walked towards the door swaying her hips with every step before bending over and grabbing her skirt-belt off the floor. The entire action was a _very _effective jaw-dropping tease.

As she got up slowly with her back still to her victim, Yang called out to the dumbstruck young man over her shoulder.

"Buuut, you're _definitely_ missing out!"

Davin had to slap himself to regain proper functioning as Yang put on her skirt, opened the door and flashed him a final wink before walking out of the dorm. He looked down at his scroll which had begun to buzz yet again, mumbling to himself as he realized that Yang had won that round hands down.

"Darn short shorts..."

* * *

In the cafeteria, Blake and Weiss sat with Sun and Neptune at the breakfast table in conversation.

Team JNPR was nowhere to be found, Velvet had her morning shift at the infirmary, and Davin and Yang hadn't come back to their dorms the night before. The four had been drawing out their own scandalous theories about it, much to Ruby's chagrin. She did eventually decide to go off looking for her sister, however, leaving the four to continue their conversation.

"Oh yea!" Neptune began as he seemed to be recalling something, "I heard you were actually kind of a badass that time."

Sun scoffed.

"Dude, I'm kind of a badass _all_ the time! People just happened to notice it then."

The three students had just informed Neptune about the events at the dock in the first semester, clearing up any doubt in regards to the faunus-boy's involvement. They would've told Neptune sooner, but waited for Blake to be comfortable with the subject before letting him into such an inner circle of trust for her.

Blake didn't mind anymore. She had followed Yang's advice and had placed her search for a brotherhood that wasn't hers anymore to the backburner, saving a good friend and giving Blake room to make new ones.

"A 'badass' with a banana? _Really?_" Weiss had such a way of turning things into arguments.

But Blake had silently retreated into her fortress of solitude in her mind as the argument inevitably began.

She and Yang had been partners and friends from initiation, and not much of that had changed. Blake saw Yang as the sister she never had... But then, Davin had entered Beacon and eventually all three had become good friends.

The raven-haired girl recalled Yang's subtle changes whenever the subject of Davin was initially passed around in team RWBY's dorm, which at first only consisted of Weiss' rants about something having to do with why Ozpin would invite some _peasant_ to attend Beacon.

'It really did start from something so small,' Blake began to have a conversation within herself, a common habit among avid book readers.

'At first she didn't care, but then it was as if she was suddenly defending him...'

She adjusted herself on the desk as the argument around her raged on, staring into nothing in particular as she propped her chin in both hands.

'And then _I_ got curious and started to talk to him too! Though I almost scared him to death when I snuck up on him one time... just wanted to ask if he was gonna eat the rest of his tuna...'

Without shifting her gaze, Blake ducked forward a bit to dogde a banana peel that missed the heiress and went flying at Neptune instead.

'And he _was _gonna eat it, I knew he was, but he gave it to me anyway! It was sweet... Unnecessary, but still sweet.'

Truth be told, Blake had come to like the young man too as she noticed the nice things he did for others, including the Faunus. She came to respect him for that as well, eventually telling him more about herself as they got closer and even trading the occasional fighting lesson for stealth and hunting lessons.

'Gotta love the fighting style,' she admitted with an internal grin.

But then again, every now and then it'd still cross her mind what might've happened between her and Yang had Davin not come around... but that wasn't meant to be in this world. Maybe in another universe or another timeline, but every time she thought about it here and now, Blake concluded that she was satisfied with being great friends with the brawler and young man. But hey, you never know...

"So Blake, I hear there's this cafe in town just opened. Sounds pretty lame, but you and me I'm thinkin not as lame, huh?"

Sun's comment brought Blake out of her internal conversation. To her, that line never got old.

And now there was Sun. The guy had spent two full days looking after her before she even opened up to him. That meant he cared. Deeply. She smiled as the faunus-boy waited for a response.

"I'm thinkin, not lame at all."

Sun silently leapt for joy in his mind, his first date now a possible reality with his alluring raven-haired friend.

The four now looked up as Jaune and Pyrrha walked into the cafeteria, hands held as usual. They got their food and had barely sat down before-

"Sun and Blake are dating now."

"Neptune!?" Sun shouted, "What do I keep _telling_ you about telling people stuff the moment I turn my back!"

"You didn't tell me it was a secret!"

Sun facepalmed of embarrasment, but instead of following suit, which Blake normally would've, she reached over to grab his other hand, smiling reassuringly at him as he glanced at her in surprise.

"No biggie."

Jaune and Pyrrha could only glance at each other in amazement. That was the _second_ new couple confirmed in the past eight hours, _third_ if what Yang had done with Davin in the Headmaster's office meant anything as well.

It was as if a _certain_ event with a _certain_ type of rare dust had repeated itself, with _certain_ outcomes the first time around that the teams had sworn never to speak of again.

* * *

Just the night before, Jaune and Pyrrha had stopped in front of their door as they took a moment more to debate whether or not public displays of affection would be okay in the dorm.

Stepping inside as they wrapped up said debate, the couple was shocked to see _two_ students on Ren's bed, lips locked in a kiss. Being caught by surprise, Ren could only momentarily stare wide-eyed at his teammates from behind Nora's head before the orange-haired girl jumped up, giggling nervously.

The pair had some explaining to do.

And as Ren so briefly did, it had become mutually official in the infirmary.

What he didn't explain was how pained he felt after the incident at the Headmaster's office, not because of his situation, but because of how close he had come to losing his best friend.

As he had cradled her weakened form all the way to the infirmary, the first time he could remember her having lost all signs of cheer, he realized what his feelings truly were and decided he was going to tell her what he felt.

He had sat at the chair next to Nora's infirmary bed, the longest string of words he had ever uttered about to escape his lips as he had called her attention.

"N-Nora?"

"Yes, Ren?" Hearing her weak voice chipped away at the poor stoic's heart.

"T-There's something I need to tell you," the green-coated student began, Nora's curiosity piqued by the rare shakiness in his voice, "something I should've t-told you a long time ago..."

As if a switch were suddenly flipped, Nora's eyes regained their normal shine as she suddenly sat up in her bed, cutting Ren's speech short.

"Oh! Ohmygosh! Is this what I think this is?!~ I mean it might not be, but is this like that moment where the guy and the girl have known each other like forever and they really get along and they even have a super cool sloth signal and they like each other, but not like, _like_-like each other, but that's just what they think! And then something happens that brings the guy and girl together, but not _together_-together, but together enough to get the guy and girl to realize what they feel for each other?!~"

As if she couldn't get any more happier, Nora seemed to brighten up even more as she brought up her hands to her chin, her eyes watering in sheer joy.

"Ren!~ Is! This! What! I! Thinkthisis?!"

Completely and utterly speechless, the stoic only chuckled once and looked back at the girl he cared for.

"Nora, you really do talk alot sometimes, you know that?"

Her expression remained unchanged in expectation of an answer. He remembered smiling wider than he had ever done before just before giving it.

"Yes."

And just like that, the orange-haired girl was healed. And with the greatest amount of patience that Ren had ever seen, she had had the self-control to actually _wait_ until they reached their dorm to attack him. An attack he found quite welcome.

Until the rest of his team had walked in.

* * *

"So where are Ren and Nora?" Sun asked, desperately wanting to change the subject.

'Not the best subject to change to, judging by the circumstance,' Pyrrha thought to herself with a smirk.

"Uhh... they went to the library," Jaune began slowly, trying to keep the new couple's status under wraps for the moment, "I guess they needed to uh... learn about a few new developments together..."

"Um. Okay."

Jaune looked down as his scroll started buzzing, surprised as he saw that he had missed three messages already.

Only one word stood out from the three urgent messages, his face losing all sense of amusement as he stood up.

"Whoa, Jaune. You okay?" Blake observed as he stood up with eyes glued to his scroll. She looked worried, as did Pyrrha when she turned to see what her friend was seeing.

"Yea, guys. I got another call from Ozpin, that's all. I'll be right back."

He turned to leave Pyrrha with the other students in the cafeteria. Little did he know of the most interesting situation he would return to.

* * *

"Dorme."

"Are you sure, Professor?" Jaune stood with the other two leaders in front of the Headmaster once more.

"I mean," the white knight continued, clearly worried, "might there be a chance the reports are _wrong_?"

"I'm afraid not, Mister Arc. Too many scouting reports confirm their growing presence, and just this morning we received confirmation that another party seems to be roaming the area as well, the identity of the second group being unknown. Hopefully, it may only be a small infestation, the second group being a few locals trying to rid themselves of it on their own."

Dorme was an affluent center of trade and commerce in the kingdom, one of the few other cities that could rival Vale in its wealth. And like Vale, it was surrounded by lush forests prone to Grimm infestation.

The Professor continued. "I would send more teams, but as I'm sure you've noticed, there are significantly less students attending this week as we have sent them on assignments all over Vale, pairing each team with a Huntsman."

"Oh, wow! Real Huntsmen?" Ruby cried out in excitement.

"Yes Miss Rose, and I suppose we will need to have your three teams make up for those credits after your return as we cannot send one with you now due to being short-staffed. But your teams are the best in this Academy and I have full confidence in your sucess. For this mission, you will be given three days to revise Dorme and its surrounding areas to rid the locals of the infestation, as well as transport."

The silver-haired man picked up a small fob from behind the desk connected to a single key.

"This is for ADA, an Automated Defensive Airship which will provide you swift transportation or air cover if ever necessary. Mister Arc, you may take them and then the three of you may be dismissed."

"And _please_," the Professer began with a pleading look in his eyes as he handed the keys to Jaune, "_do _take care of her."

The three students stepped out and made their way back to the cafeteria, a curious look on the youngest of the three.

"Hey Jaune, so what's the deal with Dorme? You know the place?"

A moment of silence passed before the knight sighed and finally replied.

"It's my hometown."

Normally, Jaune would've dropped the conversation there and remained silent to reflect on his own thoughts, but the more-than-usually pensive student at his other side had him worried.

"Hey, Vin, you okay? You didn't say a word the entire time you were in the office."

The young man paused for a moment before answering, his head down in thought.

"Have you guys ever thought it strange that the Headmaster seems to have a full head of silvery hair even though he seems relatively too young for it?" The grey-eyed student barely looked up as he spoke.

"Um, no. Why do you ask?"

"...meh. Just wondering."

The innocent response from the crimsonette seemed to bring the young man out of his dark cloud, much to Jaune's relief. But if that hadn't worked, the scene which had unfolded on the other side of those cafeteria doors definitely would've.

* * *

All Jaune needed to see from Pyrrha was the 'The-cat's-out-of-the-bag look' and he _knew_.

In front of the three leaders, their teams stood around the breakfast table. Many were blushing, most were uncomfortable.

Jaune asked anyways.

"Uhh... what happened guys?"

"Well guess _what!?~_"

Nora was the first to respond, much to the rest of the team members' dismay.

"Okay, I'm not sure if this is all chronologically in order and all but here goes!~ First, we obviously know you and Pyrrha are together cuz you two have been meant to be since like the start, but now it seems that there's a lot more than that! So me and Ren are in the library studying but we weren't _actually_ studying," Ren facepalmed as she began this part.

"And Yang happens to walk in and catch us red-handed! or should I say red-_lipped_ haha it was so exciting (and embarassing) but so much fun!~ Then we come here to find out that Blake and Sun are now dating and that it could be getting really serious after that," the faunus couple began to blush furiously at how far the implications had gone in so little time.

"Oh!~ And that Weiss clearly likes Neptune too~!"

"_Hey!_"

"We all know it's true, Princess!~" The orange haired girl must've set a record in bean-spilling at that moment. Had to be.

As most of the group blushed crimson, Yang on the other hand couldn't hold back her laughter anymore.

"Seriously, you guys? This is priceless! Ahaha this is the _best!_"

But Blake knew better. Time to spring the trap that the boisterous blande had coming to her.

"_Well_," the cat-eared faunus began mysteriously, "that's not the _end_ of the day's surprises..."

Yang's laughter slowly came to a halt.

"Huh?"

"Yang has a thing going with Vin!"

Everyone's faces turned to glance between the one surprised young man to the other angered blonde.

"Who told you me and Vin have been together!?" The blonde approached her accuser with an angry heat flare. Blake only smirked mischievously.

"_I _didn't say it. _You_ just did."

Yang could only blush as she swallowed her anger, not knowing that Blake's victory was still yet to be complete.

"Oh... _and_ beacuse Vin's weapon is sticking out of your skirt. Must've been quite a night." The raven-hared girl raised an eyebrow suggestively at the blonde as the other students stared in shock at the now non-single blonde bombshell.

Yang shut her eyes to shut out the embarassment as she blushed crimson, slowly making her way to a very amused Davin as she gingerly pulled out Starkillers from between the side of her shorts and skirt, eyes still closed.

"Here, I kept this for you but i forgoted it in my shorts." She held up the weapon adorably as Davin took it.

"Thanks, babe," He said with an amused smirk, eliciting a few playful exclamations.

But now Jaune and Pyrrha were a bit worried. Nora, Blake, Weiss and even Yang? It was starting to sound a bit too familiar.

"Guys!" Jaune yelled out, grabbing everyone's attention, "Guys, this is just a little strange and all being that so many people are becoming... erm, _involved_... at the same time. So I gotta ask, and I know I'm breaking our unspoken rule here..." He stood in the middle of the group, eyes shut and arms held out from his sides as if what he was about to say was going to cause him severe pain.

"BUT... has anyone... recently released or come into contact with... a jar,vial,kettle,pot,syringe,powder,oranyformof_**pheremone**_dust!?"

"_NO!_" A chorus of blushes and the exclamation were his immediate reply, the loudest being from the stoic.

Davin, Sun and Neptune stood uttery confused at the group of blushing faces as Davin kicked his perception into high gear to make sense of it.

Jaune was expecting a negative response _before_ he asked, suggesting prior experience.  
He had said 'pheremone', causing all the females to subconsciously retreat from _Jaune_.  
_Deduction_: Previous experience with pheremone dust in which Jaune was the center of the experience affecting everyone, even poor Velvet.  
...but Ren too? Man that would be one _hell_ of a story.

"Wait... you _too_, Ren?" Davin's query was met with the sound of Ren disengaging Stormflower's safeties.

Yang marched to his side with a deep blush, avoiding eye contact with Jaune, and grabbing Davin by the arm dragged him out of the auditorium before big things got broken.

"_That_, Vin, will be a story for another day."

Davin smirked as he was sure he already knew.

* * *

After about a half hour of awkward regrouping and briefing of the three teams' newest case, Jaune finally was able to get everyone boarded onto ADA. Davin sat next to Yang near the rear of the cabin after the airship took off towards its preloaded coordinates.

Davin looked over at Yang as she looked out the window still seemingly peeved at the turn of events in the cafeteria, but Davin had simply enjoyed it too much. Against his better judgment, he had to try and have just a little more fun with this. After all, it was fair retaliation for her teasing him that morning.

"You know, Yang, whatever happened in the past with your teammates and Jaune is all in the _past_, and apparently it wasn't even real. And I guess with all things said in the cafeteria, we're actually _official_ now..." She seemed to take a single breath to relax, agreeing with Davin's last statement without turning to look at him.

Perfect.

"Buuut," he could tell she raised an eyebrow in anticipation without seeing it, "what still gets me is that _my_ weapon gets to get into your pants before _I _do!..." He started laughing, not able to hold back any longer.

Yang was trying to think of a response but facepalmed instead as she started to blush at the not-so-unwelcome thought.

She finally began slowly in hopes of regaining control of the situation.

"Well-"

"Bow chika bow wow."

She blushed crimson again and snorted as she held back a laugh, but as Davin leaned in to tell her he was just kidding, she held up a finger behind her without bothering to turn around.

"Vin. If you ever wanna get into my pants someday... then you're gonna _shut_ yer mouth. Right. Now."

He merely smirked as he held up both hands in apology, Yang catching the gesture with her peripherals as she grinned at her own quick rebuttal.

And to her personal amusement, her now official boyfriend didn't say another word.

* * *

**_The Valean War  
_**_TPS (c) 2014_


	25. Vol 1-23: The Hometown, Pt 1

_**The Hometown, Pt. 1**  
-XXIII-_

* * *

Jaune and Pyrrha sat near the front of the cabin as ADA hummed softly towards its target, the Spartan beginning to doze off as she rested herself on Jaune's armor-less shoulder and the white knight looked out the window at the beatuful celestial expanse around them.

He found that by taking off the extra weight during flight, he was able to nearly eliminate his bouts of air sickness.

His arm beginning to lose some feeling under Pyrrha's heavy armor, the white knight decided to bring it up and around her shoulders, the action causing Pyrrha to instinctively cuddle in closer to Jaune's chest.

'Well, that was pleasantly unexpected...'

"Mmm," Pyrrha began to stir in pleasant satisfaction, "I love a man with a strong heartbeat."

Lightly blushing, the blonde leader felt the subject of her comment begin racing within his chest.

"Aw Pyrrha, _now_ look what you made it do..." He said in a mock whining tone.

Giggling softly, she simply nuzzled herself closer to the knight, the calming warmth within him escaping through an equally warm smile.

Jaune looked out the window, his mind returning to the subject of his most recent deliberations. He was going back to his hometown, sure, but what would he find? He had only been gone for a little over five months but it had felt more like five years.

'Did I really wanna get away from my old life so badly that I barely kept in touch with anyone back home?'

His mind drifted to the different shopkeepers and schoolteachers who had always appreciated the young gentleman and could always count on his goodwill and service when necessary, but Jaune involuntarily cringed as he then thought of the bullies and their heartless pranks. The wedgies, the slamming into lockers, and all those swirlies. Yuck.

They were just like Cardin. But Jaune had beat Cardin, and moreover had done so without recurring to violence, so he decided to keep the same principle with his bullies of old. Seemed logical enough.

Fight fire with water.

He involuntarily began to giggle as Pyrrha readjusted herself, her headpiece lightly brushing against the inside of Jaune's shoulder.

"Pyrrha, your circlet is tickling me!" The knight let out in a strained whisper.

"Hmm? Oh, I'm sorry..."

Though she was seemingly frustrated at her unexpected waking, she reached around her head and undid her circlet, the bronze headpiece falling to the side which let her lustrous red hair run down over Jaune's shoulder with a wave of the scent of jasmine.

The feeling of her soft hair and soothing scent flooded his senses, sending the white knight into a dreamy state.

"Man, I am seriously the luckiest person in all of Beacon..."

Though the knight couldn't see it, the Spartan was now smiling into his hoodie so full of joy that her eyes were beginning to get watery. She adjusted herself just a little more before speaking up.

"_Second_ luckiest. _I'm_ the one who gets to be with the sweetest Hunter I've ever met."

His heart leaping within his chest, Jaune reached down to kiss the head of the girl he loved, resting his cheek on her head as the two slowly drifted off to sleep together.

* * *

Elsewhere on the ship, Neptune was throwing a small fob through the air, keys dangling as he would catch it with his other hand. Just because he had picked it from Jaune's pocket didn't make him a crook. Besides, Jaune was going to be busy with his red-haired girlfriend anyways.

'Doesn't hurt to check out what this thing can do.'

Getting off his seat, he left the side of a sleeping Weiss, who upon sensing the lack of his presence subconsciously began reaching out into nothing in her sleep, which to Neptune was absolutely adorable. So he left his weapon by her side, which she instinctively grabbed and hugged to herself.

Walking to the cockpit of the airship, he saw Jaune and Pyrrha sleeping soundly along the first cabin seats and saw his chance. He stepped into the unmanned cockpit.

After all, Neptune was the arms and munitions expert. It was only fair that he learned more about the aircraft.

As he closed the door and sat in the dark room, the glass shutters being closed around the unused control panels, he clicked a small button on the fob, activating an electronic ignition in the room.

An electronically enthusiastic female voice suddenly filled the room, catching the blue-haired student by surprise.

'_Hello, and thank you for activating the M808V Main Battle Airship. You may call me ADA._'

"Hello. Ada. Big airship lady."

'_Would you like me to run the tutorial program?_'

"Oh, that'd be very nice. Thank you."

'_Tutorial program activated. This program is intended to instruct non-certified personnel in the use of the Automated Defensive Airship. Let's begin with some simulations._'

Large screens began powering on around Neptune for the flight simulations as he sat in the central seat, a large steering wheel appearing in front of him.

"Okay."

Ten minutes later, the simulation depicted the plane grounded and on its side while Neptune was trying to find the right throttle pedal. The enthusiastic voice powered up again.

'_Now that you've mastered flying the M808V, lets move on to some of the safety features._'

"No! No, wait! Go back! Why are there eight pedals if there are only six directions?"

* * *

After another hour, the ship finally landed on the outskirts of the city.

As the resounding beep that signaled the landing caused the sleeping students to stir, Neptune stepped out of the cockpit just in time to come around the sleeping pair on the front bench.

"Oh hey Jaune, you dropped these."

"Hmm?" The blonde leader stirred to see a pair of keys and a fob dangling in front of him, "Oh, thanks Neptune."

The twelve students now having woken up, Jaune stepped up to the front of the cabin to take the lead, his tactics expertise coming to the fore.

"Okay guys, we're looking at a three-day Grimm extermination assignment with a few unknown variables still in the air. So it'll be better to get the important stuff taken care of as soon as possible. Ruby, you and team RWBY can go to town and round up the supplies we'll need."

"You got it, Jaune!"

"Great! Myself and team JNPR will go find lodging in the meantime and a place to park ADA."

"Yes, sir, Mr. Fearless Leader~!" Nora saluted as she sounded off. Jaune simply smiled.

"Thanks, Nora... and Vin, you and team VNDS try to get to talking with the locals. Try and find out if anything strange has been going on and see if you can get an idea on who the second group may be."

"Sounds good."

"Alright, it's around noon right now, so let's try and meet up within the hour at the forest insertion point. We will begin looking for signs of Grimm there as soon at everyone arrives at the rendezvous."

Ren smiled and put his hand on his leader's shoulder, sure that for how far the white knight had come, Jaune deserved Beacon's Most Improved award of all time.

"Let's do this."

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, team RWBY was making their way out of another shop, Yang and Blake deciding to go to a nearby cafe to get some coffee. Ruby wasn't in the mood for coffee and besides she didn't need the caffeine unless she was pulling an all-nighter, and Weiss didn't like coffee since it could stain her teeth.

As the gold and black duo waited in line for their ridiculously expensive coffee, Ruby and Weiss sat outside at a small coffee table, the leader finally able to put down the small mountain of groceries she'd been carrying around and continuing her conversation with the heiress.

"So what exactly is a yandere again?"

The Heiress exhaled sharply in a show of disdain, "For the millionth time, Ruby, a Yandere acts sweet and cute on the outside but as soon as they fall in love over the smallest thing they become obsessed and willing to kill just to keep the subject of their infatuation in their sight."

"Ohh..." the young girl nodded in understanding.

Ruby had understood the snow-haired girl the first time, she just wanted to stretch out this rare opportunity to converse with her partner.

"Hmm... that's kinda like Nora, don't you think?"

Weiss seemed to pause for a moment in thought.

"Mmm, not _really_," the Heiress replied calmly. The crimsonette loved being able to have a normal conversation with her, "She's not so obsessive... but then again, she _has_ threatened to break the legs of any girl who does a double-take at Ren..."

"True..." The young girl paused, trying to think of a way to keep the conversation going, "And what's a Kuudere?"

"Hmm, a Kuudere is someone who acts cool and unemotional but shows sweetness later on."

"That sounds a lot like Blake!" Ruby exclaimed as the two turned to see Yang and Blake sitting in the cafe, Blake getting playfully scratched at the base of her bow.

Even from the distance, the young leader and ice princess were pretty sure Blake was mewling as the brawler scratched her cat-ears. Yang was the only one who could have this effect on Blake, or at least was the only one that the Faunus-girl permitted to do so.

Only Davin had been able to elicit a similar response when he had suspected her Faunus heritage. After a stealth lesson, they were sitting on the roof of Beacon when under the guise of readjusting her bow, he scratched at its base instead. The girl's immediate reaction of purring and nudging herself against the young man had sent a deep blush through him, and he decided he wouldn't make this a habit as the image of Yang after he had opened up to Ruby at the Forge crossed his mind.

"Definitely Blake," The heiress agreed.

"...and _you_ would be a Tsundere, right?"

Suddenly resuming her air of general peevishness, the ice princess replied.

"Ugh! _Why_ does everyone keep telling me that!?" she of course was thinking of the mountains of fic stashed in her computer's hard-drive back at Beacon.

"_Well_, people _do_ tend to think you're a meanie and cold and can get a little violent sometimes..." the crimsonette began nervously, tapping two fingers together daintily, but sat up higher in her seat and smiled before continuing.

"But _I_ know that's not true! You're elegant and sweet and thoughtful and caring and diligent and talented and beautiful just like a little ice flower!" the young girl blushed lightly as she finished the list of compliments, running out of breath.

Weiss, taken aback at the sincerity of Ruby's adulation, blushed as well and looked down as she sat in her usual proper fashion in her seat, fidgeting with her lacey sleeve cuffs. Several traits which Ruby found adorable.

"W-Why thank you, Ruby! I-I didn't know y-you thought of me that way..."

"Well it's true!" The young girl sat up proudly, happy to have finally melted through her partner's icy exterior.

"But you know..." the heiress began as she regained her composure, raising an eyebrow suggestively, "You talk a lot for a girl with the social skills of a bag of cookies. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were a _Dandere_!" she flashed a playful smile at the confused younger girl.

"A Dandere?" Weiss loved to make her leader squirm, she thought it was cute.

'_Cute?_ No, not cute! Stop it! Bad, Weiss! Ruby isn't cute, she's a dolt! Well, _my_ dolt, at least...'

"It's a good thing, kind of," the Heiress began, snapping herself out of her pleasurably confused train of thought, "a Dandere is-"

"Hey guys, we're done!" Yang interrupted as she and her partner exited the cafe, beginning to make their way to the small coffee table. Yang had her usual triple-shot espresso in hand, and Blake had her usual choco-chai tea latte, with whole milk of course.

"Ruby." The ice princess turned to the crimsonette suddenly surrounded by a menacing air, "If you tell anyone we had this conversation, I swear by the dust in my rapier that I will _end_ you." She then returned to her usual not-so-menacing self and flashed Ruby a little smile. "Okay?"

The young leader nodded enthusiastically as the team regrouped at the coffee table, both of the non-coffee drinkers sighing as the group made their way to the next food store. The same thought flashed through both girls' minds.

'_Well_, I guess a good thing can only last so long...'

* * *

Elsewhere in Dorme, team JNPR was still making their way to the best hotel in town, according to Jaune.

Still very nervous about what he may find, the blonde leader pulled down his hoodie, keeping his head down to retain his anonymity. A luxury which was impossible for his partner.

As people walked by, a noticeable number would stop for a moment to stare in surprise at the celebrity who was walking the streets of Dorme.

"_Look_, it's Pyrrha Nikos! Look, Pyrrha Nikos!" people mentioned in strained whispers, little things that the Spartan had already learned to ignore over the years. Of course, none had the courage to actually approach the girl commonly known and feared as 'The Full Metal Huntress'.

But then the unthinkable happened, Jaune's worst fear coming true.

Noticing the team from Beacon, three large teens stepped out of a nearby shop, one of them already seemingly intoxicated. Jaune recognized them immediately as his old bullies, but they seemed much worse now. They walked out to block the students' passage as the leader of the three stood in the middle and called their attention, a heavy accent in his voice.

"Oi! Lookie 'ere, what fine ladies grace our company 'ere in Dorme! 'Ey there, lassie," the large leader flashed a toothy grin at the Spartan, "why don't 'ye come oan in an' join us fer a drink! Of course, we only go' three chairs at the table for me an' mah frends, but I'd be happy to oblige ye' with a place on mah lap!" He laughed as he slapped his thigh in indication, his goons joining in with him.

"No." was the most polite response the red-haired student could muster at the moment.

Jaune instinctively twitched, reaching towards Crocea Mors. The bully gazed at the potential victim with relish.

"Oh, ho! Look 'ere, boyos! Looks like Miss Nikos' frend 'ere doesn't like mah sensible offer! Yer a wee bit scrawny to be a Hunter, don't ya think? Are ye supposed to be her shield bearer or somethin? HAH!"

"Look, the lady said no, we would like to be on our way now without further altercation," was Ren's only warning as Nora gripped Magnihild in front of her.

"Look," The bully glanced menacingly at the stoic and his partner, "This neither concerns _ye_ nor _Lady Thor_ right there, and me an' mah frends are fixin' to have a drink with Miss Nikos 'without further altercation', heh." he chuckled as he mockingly replied to the stoic. Ren scowled.

Resuming a terrible attempt at politeness, the bully continued.

"Oh dearie me, mah manners! Right, we forgo' to introduce ourselves, oat with it then. This 'ere is mah right hand man, Ed." He pointed to his side, a large teen with gorilla arms that dragged on the floor as he walked.

"And _this_ stupid drunkard right 'ere is Edd." He pointed at his other side to a rather pudgy fellow, red-faced due to the alcohol intake.

"What, so does that make you... _Eddie_?" Nora chimed in, a disturbingly minimal amount of cheer in her voice.

"Haaah, _very_ funny, Lady Thor! But no no no, you may call me Cyn!" Cyn emulated an exaggerated bow, "Well then! Now that we got introductions oat o' the way, why don't ye escort Miss Nikos back into this shop right 'ere, Ed." The large teen grinned in response, pulling out a large ax as he approached Pyrrha.

No sooner was the large Faunus within arm's reach of the Spartan when a swift throat punch and knee to the face sent him flying through the shop window.

Cyn turned to glare at Pyrrha, more furious than surprised.

"Don't worry guys," Pyrrha began as she approached the bully and unhooked Milo and Akouo, "I will take this one _myself_."

Jaune was about to hold her back when the bully suddenly steeled his gaze on the Spartan, his eyes glowing blood red and irises and pupils bending into a cat-eye shape which caused her to step back in fear now frozen in place. Except, she was now _literally_ frozen in place.

"Guys," she began, panic building in her voice as the process completed around her face, "I. Can't. _Move_."

A bully's ultimate power: a semblance which could actually _control_ peoples' fear, no matter how little, and use it to paralyze them. Jaune knew it well, but that wasn't about to stop him now.

"_Touch_ her, and it'll be the last thing you ever feel."

Cyn scoffed at the hooded figure.

"HAH! Big words from a lil' guy. What are ye gonna _do_ aboot it, peewee?"

"First off," the blonde leader stated, taking off his hood, "the name is _Jaune_, you dickhead." Many of the group which had surrounded the scene gasped at the familiar face. He _was_ part of a known family, after all.

The bully's amused demeanor, however, quickly turned malicious.

"Oho, Jauney... ye think yer all big an' bad now that ye come back from combat academy and bangin celebrities like this wan and whatnot... yer gonna wish ye never came back 'ere, boyo."

The bully's hatred for Jaune had only intensified after the blonde was accepted into Beacon, his own application being declined due to his history of violent outbursts even though he was a capable enough aura-wielder.

Pulling out his blood-crusted, serrated sabre, Cyn quickly placed it just inches away from Pyrrha's neck. Nora and Ren ready for a fight, Jaune reached for his weapon but was stopped by the sword's sudden closing of space to her skin.

"Pull tha' weapon and she'll be a pretty corpse." He slowly pulled up the blade so that the metal could caress her face.

No sooner had the blade brushed her cheek when suddenly the blade flew back against the shop wall, pinned by a white aura-projected dagger which had pierced through the sabre itself. Cyn turned in surprise to the blonde leader, who was looking at his glowing hand in shock along with the rest of his team.

Knowing many forms of combat, Ren had taught Jaune how to throw ninja stars and throwing daggers for a time, hoping to give the leader more options in a battle than his close-quarters swordplay which at the time was less than stellar. Jaune had turned out to be quite a natural at it.

Seeing the bully encroach on Pyrrha's space and having no time to think, Jaune had merely imagined how useful those weapons would be at the moment. And willing his wish to come true, he had instinctively formed a dagger in his hand and thrown it before realizing what he had done and how the dagger had come into existence.

"Cute trick, boyo," the enraged bully's voice dripped with murderous intent, "How aboot I turn ye into a rock and cut ye inta little pieces with yer own sword, eh?"

Before they could react due to the shock, Cyn turned his semblance-powered gaze to Ren and Nora, freezing them in place where they stood.

But when he returned his gaze to Jaune, the blonde leader was still advancing. He was waaay past fear now.

"You wanna know what I think, Cyn?" Jaune asked, then suddenly lashed out his aura as a white pulse, sending the bully tumbling back to the floor.

"You are a CRUEL..." Jaune picked up the recovering bully with a white aura-projected gauntlet and threw him against the shop wall, cracking the bricks around him.

"...JEALOUS..." he pulled the bully with the projection off the wall and threw him in the air, catching him mid-air with another projection and throwing him down to ground in front of him.

He now understood why the bully hated him so much all these years, the jealousy that drove him. Family, priviledge, education.

"..._heartless_ little COWARD." He approached the downed, wheezing bully, drawing out Crocea Mors and pressing the blade against the bully's neck.

"I was gonna play nice, I really was. But you crossed the line. And _here's_ what I'm gonna do about it..." the leader paused as the bully looked up at him, hate seething through his semblance-powered gaze in an attempt to freeze the threat. But to no avail.

Jaune leaned in even closer, his resolute gaze not breaking from the hateful one of the bully's.

"If you _ever_ threaten any of my friends again... I. WILL. _Kill_ you."

Jaune then stood up straight and turned to face the stunned drunkard.

"You want some of this?"

"N-No! No, no, no, no, no-!" the drunk henchman stammered as he stepped back, tripping backwards over his fellow downed goon into the shop from whence they came.

He took a few steps toward the shop and was about to apologize to the owner when-

"JAUNE! BEHIND YOU!"

A little girl's warning from amongst the large crowd surrounding them came just in time as he turned to see Cyn coming at him in a rage, having pulled a hidden dagger out of his own boot.

Without thinking, Jaune's aura blazed white around his eyes, his blue irises suddenly contracting into a cat-eye shape and completely freezing the incoming bully in his tracks.

"Always the Coward."

The bully now completely immobile, Jaune's friends were released from their bonds, promptly running over to their leader in utter shock at what had happened.

"How did you _do_ that?" Nora asked, gasping for air after being set free.

"Attacking an opponent with his back to you? Only a fear-filled _coward_ would try it. Using his fear to stop him was simple." The blonde looked into the bully's frozen eyes, still not realizing what he had done.

"You mimicked his power and used it against him..." Ren couldn't even finish his thought as he examined the frozen bully.

"Jaune," Pyrrha began in awe, "I think we may have just discovered your semblance."

* * *

**_The Valean War  
_**_TPS (c) 2014_


	26. Vol 1-24: The Hometown, Pt 2

_**The Hometown, Pt. 2  
**__-XXIV-_

* * *

Team VNDS had drifted to the center of Dorme looking for the best place to continue asking questions.

It didn't seem like people knew much on the outskirts of town, and it didn't seem to change much as they worked their way in. If anything, it seemed that the closer they got to the town center, the more finnicky and peevish the different shopowners became upon greeting the team.

However, tension seemed to only increase as said shopowners began to become subtly more anti-Faunus as they reached the center of the town as well. As the team came out of the last shop somewhat embarassed, Sun stomped out behind them, slamming the door shut.

He seemed peeved as well.

"Ugh! Did you get a load of that guy!?" he began in frustration, "he was all, 'Get out of here, we don't serve _you_ people!' and he was totally looking at Velvet and me when he said it! Doesn't make any _sense!_ There are plenty of Faunus around here, we're not the only ones! What are these people's problems!? I don't even-"

"Okay dude, calm down. Take a chill pill. If you don't have a chill pill, take one of those chill strips. You put it on your tongue, it dissolves, chill." Neptune couldn't handle another rant anymore.

"...You know, Neptune, I think Sun may have a point though." Davin mentioned in agreement, "What do you think, Velvet?"

The three guys turned to look at the bunny-eared girl who wasn't responding, a twitch in her eye as she stomped along with fists clenched at her sides.

"Oookay. I see what you mean, Vin."

And as much as he had learned about Faunus history in what little schooling he could remember, Davin knew that there was still rampant segregation in the world despite the general claims of resolved conflict between the species.

But still, something here did seem...off.

There were quite a few more Faunus than would be expected in an urban population such as this. The observation set off the young man's alarm, instinctively causing him to kick his powers of perception into gear.

"Hey Sun..." Davin began as a few more troubling deductions dawned on him, "I heard you were an okay stoaway, right?"

The monkey-faunus scoffed.

"Dude, I was a _great_ stowaway!"

"Okay, well..." Davin paused to look around as they entered the town square through a corner, a beautiful clearing filled with people and with a building-sized multi-level fountain in the middle with hanging gardens coming off the sides.

"What is it that you would do to avoid detection on those stowaway trips?"

"Meh, didn't have to do much. Avoid cameras, threaten any sailors I ran into with a swim in the ocean if they sounded the alarm, but mostly just blended in around the crew in plain sight. It was cake...why?"

Davin paused before answering.

Was that the same guy with a suit and all-red shades that he had just seen before? No, the facial hair was different. But still sinister-looking.

"_Well_, I don't know much about Faunus demographics, but supposedly Faunus usually shy away from people-dense towns and cities. This place is teeming with Faunus. The shopkeepers all had pictures inside of both human _and_ Faunus families as decorations as well, posing a discrepancy with their sudden changes in attitude towards Faunus like Sun and Velvet..."

"That can happen..." Neptune mentioned, trying to reconciliate the seemingly contradicting facts.

"No. Most of the cameras around the town center have been blacked out, black spray paint on the lenses. Souvenir shops that should be open at this time around the square look like they've been closed for days...and _oh_, there have been a small pack of guys in suits trying to stay in our blind spots since we walked in here."

His three teammates perking up in alarm at the evidence, Davin noticed a few more passing Faunus passing by them, glancing over furtively with beads of perspiration on their foreheads.

'But today is a cold day...'

Realizing the imminent danger they were in, Davin acted quickly.

"_Guys, form up!_"

They readied their weapons just in time as dozens of henchmen and planted Faunus operatives ambushed the team on the outer corner of the square.

* * *

_Buzz, Buzz, Buzz._

Yang looked down at her cell phone, Blake resting her chin on her shoulder to see it.

"What does it say, Yang?"

The blonde brawler furrowed her brows.

"It doesn't make any sense, I'm trying to figure it out."

"Who's it from?"

"Nora...she forgot to use spaces again."

"Meh." Blake took the last sip of her chai tea, throwing it into a nearby bin.

"Um let's see...it says something about 'Jaune'...and 'beer'...and 'AWESOME', all caps..."

"Did he take them to a _bar?_" the cat-eared faunus blinked incredulously.

"Lucky punks! Ruby! Read this for me!"

Yang's sister came running, an expert at deciphering hastily-written messages. It was practically how the crimsonette messaged all the time.

"Hmm," the young leader began, "it says that Jaune ran in to some bullies, they had been drinking, he beat them up, it was AWESOME, aaand...they disovered his semblance!"

"Oh really?" Weiss perked up at the news, "I wonder what it is..." the heiress wondered if it would either boost or hinder his competence, more for the sake of gauging her competition.

"Oh, and they found the hotel. They want us to join them ASAP," the crimsonette concluded quickly, handing the scroll back to its owner.

"Hmm, I wonder if Vin and his team are okay..." Yang thought aloud, pausing as she held her scroll.

"Why would you say that?" Blake asked, concerned. She had been thinking the same for the past few minutes... something about the whole town was just feeling _off_ ever since they had begun entering the shops.

"Well, he hasn't messaged me...usually we just send something randomly to each other so we don't get bored. We do that alot!"

"Do you now..." Blake seemed to be uninterested but was still paying attention.

Yang flipped open her scroll and showed the message list to her partner, whose eyes widened as she saw the quantity of typing.

"That's a _lot_ of messages, Yang. What are they even about?"

"Meh, just random stuff. Guesses on which couples in our classes or cafeteria will make up or break uuup, answers on quizzeees (mostly his answers), ideas for our first daaate...you know, stuff!"

With her enhanced vision, Blake caught just a little bit more info.

"Does that message say something about _abs_-"

"-AAAND showtime's over!" the blonde pulled the scroll back into her pocket, blushing lightly. Weiss facepalmed.

"Well," Ruby spoke up to keep things from getting awkward, "we'll just head over to the hotel, we've still got about a half hour 'till rendezvous time, maybe team VNDS is onto something and they're busy..."

"And it looks like the hotel is near the town center square, maybe we'll have time to go by the area before VNDS regroups and we head out to the forest!" Weiss exclaimed cheerfully, hoping to find nice shoes in the square. Yang liked the idea too.

"Alright then ladies, let's head out!"

* * *

"I'm running low on ammo!" A distressed Sun called out as he blasted back a few faunus with his nun-chuck pistols.

"I gotcha, bro!" Davin pulled out ammo from the Trace device and tossed it over, covering the monkey-faunus as he reloaded.

"Same back here!"

"You got it, Babs!" Davin repeated the process, chucking back a few energy rounds to the fauness-girl as she reloaded.

The nickname had come spontaneously, when he saw how Velvet looked like a bunny the name _Babs_would pop into his head for some reason. And it stuck.

"This is getting ridiculous!" Neptune cried out after blasting back his twentieth victim or so, "how much more ammo you got back there, Vin?"

"Hehe, _lots_."

The young man had spent a half hour on the airship emptying the entire contents of the ammunitions closet into Hammerspace. But the exclamation was indeed valid, the faunus were closing in on the group in hand to hand combat while the henchmen stayed back, firing grenades into the fray from their grenade launchers. Though Velvet could take care of those with relative ease with Overlord's multi-lock function, they weren't going to be able to do this forever.

As if to prove his point, a Faunus managed to graze Neptune with a large blade.

"Argh!"

"Guys, Neptune is right! We need to get across to the fountain so Babs can get to higher ground and take out those henchmen!"

Neptune whole-heartedly agreed.

"Okay then, Vin, switch!"

The young man and blue-haired student nimbly switched places, placing Neptune in the center as the three surrounded Velvet on the corner. Davin and Sun covered Neptune as he prepared to fire his weapon's main cannon.

"I hope you guys like molten plasma!"

_BOOOM!_

Temporarily opening a hole in the opposing forces, the team could only manage to get to the fountain edge before being surrounded again, Velvet taking higher ground and taking out a few henchmen from her new vantage point.

"Battery!" Neptune was promptly tossed one as the fighting resumed.

Long having been cleared out of bystanders, the enemies still kept coming from every direction, but Davin could notice the Faunus forces were winding down, many now crippled or unconscious. But still...

"Okay, this _is_ ridiculous! Babs, you got anything in the quiver for these Faunus!?"

"Yes! But we'll need proximity among them!" Hatching a plan, Davin called out one of the teams' previously practiced formations.

"You heard her, guys! Round up the Sheeps!"

Perfected with practice, the three Hunters-in-training advanced, Neptune and Sun going forward to flank the dwindling pack of Faunus.

"Okay, Babs, switch!"

Quickly switching places, Davin jumped backwards in an aura-powered somersault over Velvet, throwing both halves of Starkillers and disabling most of the remaining grenade launchers. At the same time, Velvet shot an energy grenade into the pack with her bowcaster, detonating and electrocuting anything in close proximity. Neptune and Sun made quick work of the few remaining faunus before each ran out of ammo.

As Davin caught Starkillers, one of the henchmen caught his attention, not just because he was only wearing a vest and no sunglasses unlike the other henchmen, but because he began to shout at Velvet.

"AGH! You bunch of stupid, stupid faunus with your stupid, stupid weapons! Jeez! And your stupid bunny ears too!"

"Heeey, that guy looks familiar..." Neptune began but paused as he saw his steaming teammate. That comment about her ears had been the last straw on a lifelong string of put-downs, sending the normally shy girl into a never-before-seen fury.

With an angry pout, she stomped over to her antagonist, who pulled out his club and chuckled at the incoming girl.

Sun was about to join her, but Davin held him back.

"Hold on a sec, Sun..."

As the final dozen henchmen surrounded the lone bunny-earned faunus with their leader, she only kept her eyes on the tall leader himself, loading a final round of energy grenades in her grenade launcher underneath her bowcaster.

Two henchmen came in to charge her.

"I have _had_ it...!"

She dropped to the ground at the last moment as the two henchmen collided above her, swiping each of their legs out and punching one while launching an energy grenade into the other at the same time before either even hit the floor, launching each of them dozens of feet away over the fountain. She never broke eye contact with the leader.

"With...!"

Four more henchmen charged, but before they could even reach her she leveled two of them with a spinning roundhouse kick combo to their heads, knocking the other two out with an outstretched Overlord as she landed.

"YOU...!"

The final six all charged her at once, each armed with different weapons.

"_MOTHERFATHEEERS!_"

Seeing six henchmen fall in record time with extremely painful-looking blows, her three teammates could only watch on the sidelines as she charged the leader, her face reddened with rage.

"I'll KILL a motherfather!"

As she met the tall leader with a flurry of kicks and grenades, the three guys only looked on in surprise...and confusion.

"Uhh...does she know that's _not_ how you say it?" Neptune eeked out as he watched the havoc wreaked around him, henchmen trying to aid their leader with very painful results.

"I tried...but that's how she remembered that lesson about slang. I didn't have the heart to tell her she kept saying it wrong..." Sun admitted.

"You guys are the _worst_...oof!" Davin winced as he saw several henchmen electrocuted where the sun don't shine.

They stared, their heads turning to follow the length of the square as the enraged faunus girl chased after the leader as she literally _carried _a crying henchman by his leg through the air as if the henchman were a club.

"I'll _beat_ a motherfather...WITH ANOTHER MOTHERFATHER!"

She actually did.

"AGH!...I swear...OOF! AGH!...you're even _worse_...JEEZ! ACK!...than _Blondie!_...GRK! GAH!"

Throwing the now-unconscious henchman/battering club away into the fountain, she now pulled out Overlord on the battered boss on the floor.

"What is your name!"

"My name...*pant pant*...is Junior."

"Well, _Junior_, I'll have you know that it is very VERY..._mean_...to call someone stupid! ESPECIALLY if it's only because they're a Faunus!"

Junior held up both hands in apology as he kneeled on both knees, not wanting to look up and see the loaded weapon pointing at him.

"I-I'm sorry! Jeez!"

"It is a very STUPID thing to do!" the bunny-eared girl continued, "So from now on, you shall call me..._Venerable Overlord_...GOT IT?"

"U-Uh, yes! Yes, V-Venerable Overlord..."

"GOOD!"

As she pulled the trigger, the detonation of the final energy grenade at point-blank range lit up the entire square in artificial light.

"OOH! HEADSHOT!" the three cringing teammates cried out in unison.

As Velvet looked up over the unconscious figure of Junior, the agape teams of JNPR and RWBY who were standing at the other corner of the square caught her eye. They had seen the whole thing, having arrived just before Velvet had begun her onslaught.

As the two groups converged at the scene by the fountain, Sun walked up to the now-calmer Velvet, patting her on the back.

"Velv, I think you've just graduated into the class of Badassery, with a double major on Pownage and Destruction!"

Kicking over the limp Junior and seeing the spent energy grenade rolling away from his head, even Yang had to admit that she couldn't have done better herself.

"Guys," Ruby bean as she surveyed the destruction around her, "There have to have been at least fifty people here! You guys took them all on by yourselves?"

"Well yea...it didn't seem like...so many...at the time," Davin admitted sheepishly for his team.

"The important thing is that you all survived," Jaune stated, "was anyone hurt?"

Neptune pointed at his shoulder. "Just a little, it'll heal."

But Weiss would have none of it. She strode up to the blue haired student.

"Show me."

Upon seeing his fresh wound still seeping blood, the heiress' face melted into one of rare compassion.

"Oh you poor thing! I have _just_ the thing for that!"

As everyone looked at each other in surprise, Weiss pulled out a small pale green vial and sprinkled its contents onto the affected area, healing the wound.

"There! All better!"

She walked back to her team grinning, but though Yang and Blake were giggling, Ruby was blushing. She still felt a bit weird that Neptune was getting that kind of affection from Weiss.

"Anyways," Davin began, trying to move the situation along before any awkwardness could set in, "there was an insertion point for the forest thing?"

"Yea, and we're right on schedule." Jaune replied, unaffected by the situation in front of him. Obviously, much to his girlfriend's elation, he was indeed over Weiss.

* * *

Once again at the outskirts of town, the group was surprised to find that they weren't the first ones at the insertion point. Tracks lined the entire area as many trees had their leaves blown off, as if an army and a tornado had clashed in the same area. But no sign of bodies were found.

"Hmm, that's strange." Jaune began, "We'll have to take a look further in...the forest is pretty dense from here on, so maybe some air support will help to avoid any more unnecessary fighting while we look for answers. I'll call in ADA."

Reaching for the fob, Jaune silently cursed at himself upon realizing he had left it at the airship in the dock where they had first landed.

"Okay, new plan. We'll need someone fast to get to the airship...as it is currently unprotected."

The monkey-faunus furrowed his brows.

"Why's it unprotected?"

"...Beeecause the key's are still inside." the blonde leader facepalmed at his own actions. Some things never change.

"HAH. Nice."

Huddling everyone up at the insertion point, the white knight began to deliberate out loud.

"Okay, we need to get started on this investigation but it's still pretty early. So it's safe to say that getting someone to the airship _is_ a priority. So let's see..." Jaune paused to look around at the group, "Who is the fastest aroun- Ah! Ruby!"

The red leader perked up surprised, "Huh?"

"Ruby! can you do that really fast run with the speed and the petals to the airship and fly it over here? It just needs coordinates and I got em on my scroll!"

The crimsonette seemed unsure.

"Uhh, yea...buuut I'm not super sure I quite remember where we parked it and I'm not really good at techy stuff other than weaponry..."

"_Or_..." Pyrrha cut in, a knowing smile on her face, "we can get _you_ to the airship, _just_ as fast. You know how to guide it here, Jaune."

Ruby seemed to question the statement, "_Just_ as fast?"

As the other two teams listened in, the blonde leader told them about his history with the bullies of Dorme and the events of that day. At the end, eight more very surprised faces glanced at the narrator.

"So you did...and they did...and you're now...that's cool." Was all Davin could muster.

"_So_," the Spartan began as she pulled aside the blonde and red leaders, "Do your thing, Jaune."

With a nervous chuckle, Jaune tried to focus on Ruby and her ability to see if that'd work. Nothing.

"Umm, this kinda isn't an exact science...I'm not feeling any different."

Still smiling, Pyrrha responded, "Try harder."

After another moment or so, Jaune stood a little red-faced at the exertion across from a slightly blushing Ruby. She was beginning to feel awkward. Then Davin remembered something.

"Hey Jaune! Didn't you whip that guy around a bit with your Aura? Give that a shot!"

"Oh! You're right!"

Reaching out with his aura like an outstretched hand, Jaune let it touch the side of Ruby's head softly. She giggled.

"Haha, it tickles!"

Then the aura-projetion pulsed red for just a millisecond, and then things went haywire. Jaune's mind suddenly sped up to a million miles per hour, people around him seemingly slowing down.

"Ruby! How do you function like this!?"

Pyrrha and Ruby approached Jaune, along with a very curious Weiss.

"Do you think you have it now?" the Spartan was very excited, "let's try a test. Try and get something close by...mmm...something for me! And just bring it back." The knight nodded in affirmation.

With a purpose in mind, the white knight began to glow a soft white, crouching down in a runner's starting position.

"Okay...here goes..."

And in just a moment, he was gone, leaving behind an unexpected flurry of-

"WHITE ROSE PETALS!" The crimsonette and heiress exclaimed in unison, each snatching one out of the air before anyone could notice.

No sooner had the petals landed on the floor when Jaune returned, clearly dazed beyond normal function.

"Woohoooo..." he began dizzily, "wha-what a rush! Here Pyrrha baby, I got dis for you!" He was looking at Weiss.

"Jaune. Other side."

"Oh."

He turned to the Spartan with a red rose in hand, a small black ribbon on the stem engraved with the word JNPR. Pyrrha, upon realizing what it was, looked at Jaune with no small measure of surprise.

"Jaune! That flower was sitting on our dorm desk in Beacon when we left!"

"Wuz it dat far? I didn't notice..."

"Oookay he's gonna need some rest. Same thing happened to me when I first manifested," Ruby explained, "aaand somehow I ended up in Mistral before I even knew what was going on." She took the rose from Jaune and handed it to his orange-haired teammate.

Turning to Ren, Nora offered the rose to him, clasping his hands around hers.

"Teehee~!"

Upon seeing it, a goofy grin appeared on Jaune's dizzy face as broke free from the red-heads and hobbled over to the newer couple.

"Wai-wai-wait, I know how to do dis! Dearly beloved-"

"No, shut him up." Ren began, "seriously, shut him up."

"Wait, I wanna see where he goes with this!" Yang told the stoic with glee as the leader began in broken pauses.

"We are gathurd here, today, to witness, the joining togethur of Nora, an' Ren, in eternalness togethur!...so uh...speak now! Or forevur, rest in peace! With liberty, and justice, for all. Da End."

The blonde collapsed backwards in exhaustion.

The stoic shut his eyes, blushing furiously as most of teams VNDS and RWBY dropped to the floor laughing.

Pyrrha, picking up the limp form of her leader with Ruby and Neptune, had an alternative in mind.

"Well Ruby, you can still go..."

"And I can go with her..." Neptune added, "I'm good with airships."

Kinda.

But the redheads didn't know that. They simply nodded at the idea.

* * *

A few minutes later, the six remaining students from teams VNDS and RWBY explored the entry trails into the surrounding forest, Davin and Yang at the fore and the other four students in the rear, still wiping away tears of laughter. They seemed to be reaching a dead end when-

"Look, over here!" Blake's voice rang out through the air, a rare tinge of worry laced through it.

Slightly alarmed, the group ran to her location, seemingly running into another dead end of heavy shrubbery. As she saw them coming, the raven haired girl pulled back a few strangely leaf-less shrubs.

"Bodies."

There were several of them under the low canopy, and they all had one thing in common.

"What are those masks for?" Davin asked curiously.

"Those are Grimm masks. For The White Fang." Yang replied, looking at her cat-eared teammate in worry.

"Well now we know they're in cahoots with all this. They're probably the ones who ambushed team VNDS at the square along with Junior's men." The group agreed with the heiress, who spoke matter-of-factly as if it should've been obvious. But even though it was the truth, Blake ignored her anyway.

"They're all _dead_. Who would've done this?" The faunus girl began, appalled at the scene.

"Well whoever did this," Davin started observing, examining a few of the bodies, "was incredibly precise. One stab or one slash on each body. No other marking."

"Just one person!?" Blake asked incredulously, anger rising in her voice.

"It would seem so. Blade marks are consistent in every victim. But the trail runs cold here, we should resume searching along the main path."

As the students stood for a moment longer contemplating the scene, Weiss smiled.

"_Well_, I guess these guys came here and met a..._dead end?_" she chuckled at her own pun.

A very audible facepalm from Blake.

"Weiss! Worst. Sense of humor. _Ever!._.." The heiress was genuinely hurt at the rejection of her joke...again.

"Bu-"

"...OF ALL TIME."

"Well at least I'm trying!"

The raven-haired girl looked up to the trees, audibly sighing in frustration.

"Vin, I think I can try to track whoever did this from here. These bodies haven't been here too long."

"Alright," Davin replied, "You should take Sun and Velvet just in case. Weiss, Yang and I will stick around here and look for any other leads while we wait for you."

Blake turned to go into the forest, but Davin spoke up one more time.

"But Blake..." He called out, worry in his voice. She turned her head, hand on Gambol Shroud.

"...take care of yourself." With a single nod, she delved through the shrubbery, Velvet and Sun following closely.

* * *

Minutes later, Davin and Yang were sitting next to each other watching Weiss mumble about something angrily in the distance.

"So, Schnee..." Yang began, bringing the young man's attention to his beautiful partner.

"...and Vasilias. Make up or break up?"

The young man paused in contemplation. "Hmm, Break Up."

"Whaaat? No way! I say Make Up!"

"C'mon, Sunshine. When have I been wrong before?" the young man asked, eyebrow raised in expectation.

The brawler scoffed.

"First time for everything! Those two won't break up anytime soon, I wouldn't believe it unless I see kittens fly!"

As if on cue, Blake suddenly flew in through the shrubbery landing in an unconscious heap between the couple along the trail.

"Poor choice of words?" Davin half asked, half stated as a fact.

"_Very_ poor choice of words."

"Weiss, take care of Blake! Let's go, Yang."

The two leapt through the gap in the canopy, unsure of who...or what...lay waiting on the other side.

* * *

_**The Valean War**  
TPS (c) 2014_


	27. Vol 1-25: The Loner

_**The Loner  
**__-XXV-_

* * *

Davin felt the branches from the canopy brush his shirt and sleeveless forearms, the heavy smell of freshly cut and broken wood hanging in the air.

As he listened to the steady breathing of the young blonde behind him, the sound of clashing and shouting grew ahead of him, instinct now advising he deploy his armor. He had a terrible habit of forgetting to do it before a battle, and found himself forgetting again as the two students paused after breaking through into a large clearing.

Yang blinked a few times, trying to make sense of it.

"What is that?"

A giant whirlwind had stripped all the trees around the surrounding clearing bare, many of the leaves of various colors now whirling violently at the top of the hill around a silent figure as Velvet and Sun tried pelting it with different projectiles from the outside.

"_Who_ is that?" The leader specified.

The whirlwind suddenly dying down, the shrouded figure sped towards Sun with impressive speed, countering and deflecting Sun's spinning nun-chuck strikes and simultaneous pistol blasts with what seemed to be a straight-blade and its sheath.

As Velvet prepared to launch an energy grenade, the figure shifted his style, blocking Sun's dual-handed attacks with just his chokuto, holding out his sheath against the incoming grenade as it expanded into-

"Whoa! Is that an umbrella?" Yang stated in surprise.

"Yep! Time to engage."

As they ran up the hill, the silent figure continued blocking and evading Sun's attacks on one side while deflecting the healer's energy arrows on the other with his sheath, ducking backwards as the faunus-boy swung wide arcs with his nun-chucks at his skilled opponent.

When Davin reached the top, he saw the figure lift the now-opened umbrella-sheath against Velvet while blocking a few more blows from Sun, and at the moment the monkey-faunus ran out of ammo the sheath collapsed shut with incredible force, sending Sun flying back several dozen feet with a blast of compressed air as the sheath propelled itself forward, knocking Overlord out of Velvet's hands.

Catching it as it recoiled from the healer, the silent opponent flipped it around just in time to begin deflecting a flurry of gauntlet attacks from the brawler as he engaged Davin's Starkillers blade with his chokuto on his other side.

Finally getting under his nimble sheath, the brawler ducked under his arm and landed a solid uppercut on the fellow, sending him soaring to the bottom of the hill. Davin looked over at his partner.

"Nice."

But they didn't have much time to recover as the figure, a younger boy surprisingly, began to rapidly swing his umbrella around himself which created another small whirlwind that tore at the few remaining leaves on the trees around him.

The two watched the whirlwind shrink as it gained speed and the boy's glowing aura seep into his weapons, and slashing both straight-blade and now-collapsed umbrella sideways, he sent several blades of compressed air hurdling to them.

"Duck!"

With barely any time to react, the young man had generated an aura barrier around himself but was shocked to look up and see the attack had cut clean through the orchid shield, missing his head by inches. Yang was blasted back as the blades clashed against her upheld gauntlets, damaging Ember Celica.

"Aargh!"

Upon hearing the brawler's cry of pain, the darkness roared inside Davin. He muttered only one thing under his breath.

"Wrong move, buddy."

The silent attacker barely had time to straighten up before suddenly hunching over and turning pale as he coughed haggardly, dropping his weapons as he frantically reached for his choking throat.

Sun and Velvet came up and over the hill to see a very angry Davin with black orbs for eyes and an arm outstretched towards the wheezing attacker at the bottom of the hill. Sun blinked incredulously as the young man lifted his arm higher and turned his wrist in, causing the boy to levitate and close in to the top of the hill.

"Uhh... I didn't know Davin could do that..."

With the boy still in midair and now only a few feet from the young man, Davin began speaking with an uncharacteristically low and growling voice, clearly influenced by the black aura cascading around him.

"_Who sent you. Why did you attack us._" They barely sounded like questions.

Gasping for air, the boy moved his lips but couldn't make a sound. Davin, however, managed to lip-read the response.

'Thought you were... White Fang.'

"_Do I look like White Fang to you. Grr..._" Davin grimaced, growling as he tightened his new-found telekinetic hold on the boy who clutched at his own throat for air, the boy becoming even more pale than he normally was.

"Vin!"

Having recovered and now standing again, Yang's voice seemed to bring the young man out of it. He turned to her as the darkness dissipated from his eyes, the boy dropping to the floor coughing and wheezing.

Davin looked at his hands in disbelief for a moment, nodding at Yang once in gratitude before returning his gaze to the weakened boy. His reasoning made sense. It _was_ Sun, Blake and Velvet who had approached him in the clearing, after all.

"Alright. You will stay quiet and follow us to a place where we can question you further. You _will _comply, if you know what's good for you."

The boy sullenly nodded once in agreement.

Yang felt a pang of sadness pull at her stomach at seeing Davin acting and speaking without emotion. It was just so... grim. Eyes flashing black for a moment more, Davin mentally called the boy's dropped weapons to his hand from the bottom of the hill.

"I'll keep these for now," Davin stated as he placed the confiscated weapons into hammerspace.

The students and the boy made their way back towards Dorme.

"He's just a _kid_, ya know?..." Yang whispered to Davin as they walked through the forest trail, the boy trudging along several feet in front of them and behind an armed and _very_ cautious Sun and Velvet.

He really was. With wavy brown hair that fell over his eyes, the boy wore an open black jacket with a grey shirt underneath, tan rolled-up khakis at calf distance revealing the all-white PK Flyers he wore on his feet. The boy gripped at his brown leather driver's gloves as he walked, an unconscious habit which Davin deduced came from the lack of his weapon which he must've had on hand at all times.

But the young man didn't respond and simply continued walking, maintaining his steeled gaze set ahead of him.

* * *

Finally approaching the insertion point at the edge of the forest, the students saw the airship stationed in the large clearing between the forest and the town.

Neptune, Nora, Ren and Ruby stood watch around the airship before noticing their incoming teammates. Upon seeing them, Neptune and Ruby ran over as Nora and Ren audibly sighed in relief as they stood by the airship entrance.

"Thank dust you guys are okay!" Ruby began, her brows furrowing adorably as she noticed the addition to the group, "Who's that?

"I don't know. We're gonna take him in for questioning," Davin replied monotonously.

Neptune began debriefing the group on their situation as they made their way to the ship, "After Ruby and I brought the ship over, we loaded Jaune into the medical bay to rest as we waited for your return..."

The boy suddenly seemed to perk up a bit.

"Jaune was really exhausted!" Ruby added pointedly, "He'll have to practice pacing himself if he's ever gonna do that again!"

"Yep," Netune agreed as he continued, "Jaune just woke up, though. He should be walking again soon. But we were surprised to see Weiss come back not too long after we landed, carrying Blake. What happened?"

Sun and Velvet scowled as Davin and Yang glanced pointedly at the captive.

"Oh."

"Yea, I don't think Blake'll be too happy to see him when she wakes up..." Ruby shuddered as she thought of the possibilities.

But just then, Jaune and Pyrrha walked out of the main side entrance to meet their returned teammates. The white knight froze upon seeing the captive, and to the students' surprise, his eyes brightened up in joy.

"Seul!"

Looking up for the first time, the boy whipped his hair out of his eyes, which proved to be a lustrous shade of dark green that became much brighter than his demeanor as he recognized the blonde leader.

Running down the ramp to meet him, Jaune hugged the captive and pulled back, suddenly eyeing the surprised students around him in confusion.

"Hey guys, what happened?"

"Well _this_ guy right here attacked us, saying that he thought we were 'White Fang'," Sun angrily explained. He had been able to hold off dozens of White Fang operatives earlier that day, but couldn't gain the upper hand over just one boy? _Jeez_.

Jaune merely blinked in surprise, paling slightly.

"Huh. I'm glad you guys _survived_. Not many people can say that."

Yang narrowed her eyes at the other blonde.

"You actually _know_ this psycho kid?"

"Well yea. He was one of few friends when I lived here, we looked out for each other! He had my back and my family and I gave him a room when he had nowhere else to stay. We go way back, a few years actually."

Before anyone could continue questioning the leader, Weiss ran out of the ship.

"Blake just woke up!"

The students flooded into the airship, Jaune dragging in the silent boy without having yet connected the day's events with the awoken faunus inside the aircraft. The moment the catgirl saw the boy, she unsheathed Gambol Shroud and advanced menacingly.

"_You!_"

Jaune, realizing his mistake, quickly stepped in between them.

"_Wait!_" He exclaimed sternly, causing the raven-haired girl to stop in her tracks, "He is a _friend_. And this was an accident."

"An 'accident'... riiight," Blake began sarcastically as she tried to remember the last time she had been rendered unconscious in battle. She couldn't.

Now glaring at the boy who kept his gaze on the floor, Blake's only indication of emotion was the anger that shone in her bright amber eyes.

"...And that's _some_ semblance you got ther."

"I doubt it was his semblance," the white knight noted as he continued to defend his long-time friend, "He has the ability to manipulate air currents with his aura which he can use against others, sure, but his _semblance_ would've likely cut right through you. Once he pulls in enough compressed air, he can launch it out as several air-blades which are _really_ sharp."

"I noticed," Yang mused as she looked at her gauntlets.

"No worries, nothing I can't take care of in the forge," Neptune added reassuringly.

"Hmm... he must've been fighting a long time today. At its full strength, I've seen his semblance cut through entire vehicles. He's been doing this a long time, after all... since he was four, I think..."

"How could anyone remember training with their semblance for that long?" Blake asked, clearly peeved.

"Because it killed my parents when it manifested for the first time..."

The students turned in surprise to the boy, who had just spoken up for the first time.

"...so, yeah. People tend to remember that kind of thing."

Jaune put his hand on the boy's shoulder consolingly as the cabin dropped into a moment of silence.

With Blake having calmed down a bit, Davin now took the fore in the interrogation.

"Where did you learn to fight like that? Did you go to a combat school?"

The boy shook his head.

"Then did someone train you?"

The silent boy sighed before speaking up again, as if it caused him great pain to do so.

"When I was real little, a teacher took me in. Taught me control. And how to fight. Gave me Hansel and Gretel."

Davin pulled out the weapons from hammerspace and glanced at Jaune, who seemingly understood the question from his gaze.

"We can trust him."

Now handing the weapons to Seul, Davin suddenly eyed the weapon with some confusion, a question forming in his mind.

"Which one's Hansel and which one's Gretel?"

The boy raised the chokuto in one hand, "Hansel," then raised the umbrella in the other, "Gretel," and then sheathed the chokuto in the umbrella, the hilt of the blade becoming the handle of the accessory.

"Fair enough. Did you know the forger of that blade?"

"An old man by the name of Qrow. He's the one who took me in."

Ruby gasped, quickly asking the next questions.

"That's my uncle! What happened to him? Why didn't you go to Signal? Why didn't I know about this?"

Overwhelmed by the sudden barrage of questions, the boy did his best to respond.

"Look, the man was pretty secretive about everything. And I ran away before I turned thirteen. So I never went to Signal. Been on my own since."

Davin now resumed his interrogation, "So you settled in Dorme where you met Jaune. So what does that make you, fifteen? Sixteen? And why Dorme?"

Another sigh from the boy.

"Sixteen. Came here for the Grimm. Good practice."

"And why would a kid want to practice killing such dangerous creatures?"

"Dunno. I _like_ it. I guess."

"...Then why expand your circle of 'practice' to the White Fang?" Davin was now gearing things where he needed them to go.

"I do what I do to rid the world of the monsters living in it," the boy began, now looking up at the young man's eyes, "and the Grimm, they're not the only monsters out there."

Blake's anger returned.

"How can anyone as young as yourself even _talk_ like that? And not just kill without remorse, but _like_ it as well?" It was rare to see Blake raise her voice like this.

The boy kept his gaze on the raven-haired girl steady.

"If you had to kill to survive, wouldn't _you?_"

Blake glared at him. She _had_ been in that situation before. She thought about her old life. About her old partner. And how close she had come to enjoying it herself.

And though the hardened catgirl's gaze could usually get anyone else to crumble in their shoes, she suddenly realized that it had no effect on him. He was returning the very same glare. And at that moment, an understanding passed between the two youths who had grown up outside the kingdoms.

"There's a book," The boy continued in realization, "a book many read who lived outside the kingdoms. About a man with two souls. Each fighting for control over his body. You know it?"

"I do," Blake replied steadily.

"I am like that man. I wish I could be normal. I do. But there's a side of me that won't let that happen. You understand?"

Finally breaking their gaze, Blake looked down and sighed, thinking about her own emotional turmoil within. She did now.

The boy spoke up one more time.

"We are all brethren in the same cause. I just prefer the version where the enemy can't get back up and vow revenge."

The students let out a small sigh of relief when Blake now looked up at the boy with a smirk.

"Do you always have to be so dramatic?"

The boy returned a smirk of his own.

"Do you always have to wear that bow to cover those cat ears?"

Blake hissed at him in annoyance. To a few of the people present in said cabin, it almost seemed like the two had met previously.

"Okay," Yang now cut in, directing herself to Seul, "glad we got that out of the way! So, were you ever able to find anything out about the White Fang's involvement in all this... you know... before _killing_ everybody?"

The boy deadpanned, "Of _course_... but not much. I didn't exactly let the operatives finish their conversation. They said they're taking advantage of something about a communication disruption. Something about gathering forces. And something about a distraction."

Ruby seemed worried as she spoke up once more, "Sounds like what Ozpin was talking about when he pulled me into his office. An intruder found her way into the CCT and I think she planted something!"

Jaune now seemed worried as well, "Any idea what it was? Maybe a virus?"

"I dunno..." The crimsonette looked down in dejection.

"If it's about a _virus_," the boy spoke up again, "I know someone who could help. A mutual friend of ours, Jaune." He finished with a smile, the first one any of the students had seen since meeting him.

Jaune grinned. "You talkin about who I think you're talkin about?"

"Yep."

"You actually know where he _is?_"

"Yep."

"Wow. Okay, we'll get some rest and head out after sunset. You'll show us the way. Sound good, guys?"

The students all nodded in affirmation.

* * *

Later that afternoon, Blake sat at the edge of one of the upper balconies of the airship's hull that overlooked the small town. It wasn't as high as the roof in Beacon, but it was good enough.

The majority of the teams were resting inside, Blake could hear Jaune and Pyrrha talking with Seul in the cabin. Mostly Jaune and Pyrrha, though. Seul never seemed to talk more than was absolutely necessary.

People always seemed to forget how well the cat-faunus could hear.

"Just like Ruby when she embarks in her secret cookie raids, or Ren and Nora when they returned from the infirmary..." She said softly to herself with a chuckle.

"And you were listening in? Oh my~"

She turned in surprise to the source of the unexpected sound. Davin was approaching on the same balcony halfway down the airship from behind her, several dozen yards away. He was one of very few who could sneak up on Blake.

"I keep forgetting how much your hearing has improved since Yang unlocked your Aura."

He walked up next to her, sitting down with a lazy grunt and hanging his legs off the balcony beside the faunus-girl.

"Yep! How else do you think I found you up here?"

Blake raised an eyebrow but responded flatly, "I hadn't been speaking previously."

"Heartbeat," Davin grinned as he pointed at her heart in indication. Blake deadpanned.

"Seriously?"

"Yah!" The young man countered with an expression of mock offense, "it's actually kinda weird, like a sixth sense. I can tell where people are and it's even sharper at night without the buzz of daytime activity..." And with a playful grin appearing on his face, continued, "and _you_, kitten, tend to have an increased heartbeat on _Thursday _nights! Favorite day to read a certain _book_, maybe?"

The catgirl immediately blushed red. He loved to bug Blake almost as much as Yang did. And though Blake wasn't comfortable enough with Yang to talk about it due to her antics, she was almost comfortable enough with the young man to talk about that specific topic freely. She sighed, rolling her eyes as she got over it.

"Meh. It helps me unwind."

It was the truth. Thursday nights always felt unusually tiring for some reason, every single week...

"Hehe I'm sure it does~ Ow." Davin would've continued, but was cut short when Blake stopped him with a swift elbow to the side. Yang was clearly rubbing off on the young man.

He continued chuckling, but taking heed of the faunus-girl's warning glare, Davin decided to change the subject.

"So, you're feeling better? I take it that it's been a while since someone downed you like that in combat."

"Yes. Much better," Blake began thoughtfully, "I guess it's because I now understand where Seul was coming from. Shoot first, ask questions later. We may be different, but we came from a similar upbringing."

"Okay, good," Davin replied enthusiastically, already having figured out what such an upbringing might've involved for the raven-haired girl, "Cuz I'll admit, you were starting to scare me back there when you woke up!"

"Oh? You thought I was scary?" Blake smirked in amusement, lifting her hands at the young man like claws and hissing playfully.

"Oh _please_, you're harmless!" He reached up and began scratching at her bow.

"Nooo..." The weight of the cat-faunus' objection died off as he found the right spot at the base of her cat ears, soon being replaced by the sound of soft purring. Davin stopped just as she began mewling.

"Mmm... why'd you stop?" She asked in mock frustration.

"Cuz I don't want you to fall off the balcony in that blissful state of yours," He replied with a grin.

Blake nudged him with her shoulder in jest. The two then continued to sit silently together for what felt like a few minutes, contemplating the radiant sunset over the colorfully diverse town and forest before Davin broke the silence.

"Incoming."

"Huh?"

Blake turned to see a mane of blonde hair coming up over the side of the balcony a few feet behind them. Yang's head popped up with a grin.

"There you guys are! My two best buds!"

The blonde brawler hopped up and got comfortable next to the young man, leaving him between the two Huntresses.

"So whatchu two talkin about?"

Davin turned his attention to her, leaning into the fiery blonde as he always found her presence warmly inviting.

"Nun much, just picking Blakey's mind here..."

"Good luck with that, _that_ girl's a lost cause," Yang chuckled as she glanced at Blake with a wink. Blake simply rolled her eyes.

Davin, however, couldn't help letting out a small smirk which both girls noticed.

"Well I don't know about _that_. I'd say I've figured out quite a bit about our mysterious catwoman today..." Blake raised her eyebrow in curiosity.

"Oh, really?"

"Yep. When we found the bodies, you seemed familiar with the figures, indicating previous relation between yourself and the White Fang. From your growing passion in tracking the assailant I further deduced that your past roots must've run deep with said group."

"How so?" Blake asked, interrupting Davin's train of deduction. He seemed undeterred.

"Because passion can be linked to either anger or empathy. And in your case, the anger was not directed to the slain but to the slayer. Therefore, your empathy - and possibly sympathy - may have once lain with the group of victims. Possibly on a good friend or acquaintance specifically, seeing that you went out of your way checking every body as if you were checking for a specific _person_."

Seeing Blake's paling face as he went on, he now finalized his conclusions.

"So, judging from today's conversation with Seul, you grew up outside the kingdoms where somehow you became affiliated with the White Fang either directly or through a close friend, then leaving said life for a personal reason, cuz you don't seem to be the type to leave something unless you have good reason to, before joining Beacon."

After a moment of stunned silence, Blake finally spoke.

"Wow. Well... it was a bit of both. I... was once a _member_ of the White Fang..."

"Ack, there's always _something_..." Davin chided himself under his breath at his missed deduction.

"...along with someone I _used_ to think was a close friend. So... not bad, Vin." Blake finished with a small smile.

The very impressed brawler, however, was now beaming at her partner.

"We are _so_ having another one of our special 'practice' sessions tonight..." Yang began with a knowing grin at Davin, bringing the attention of her two friends to her poorly hidden agenda.

But judging by the look in her eyes, Davin knew that she wasn't kidding. Blake of course had no idea what they were taking about.

"What do you mean special 'practice'?"

"Let's show her, Vin!" Yang blew into her hand to check her breath and began leaning in towards Davin with a chuckle, her intended target now obvious.

Sensing a plot to tease Blake, Davin did the only thing he could to save the faunus-girl from the awkwardness. His hands shot out to tickle the mischievous brawler's exposed midsection.

"Ah!... you... _monster!_" Yang playfully cried out between fits of laughter. Blake looked on in amusement at the couple.

"So, Yang is _ticklish?_" Blake commented with a mischievous grin at the brawler, having finally found a way to end the boisterous blonde's antics within her own team's quarters.

Yang gasped in realization that her weakness had been exposed, and now glared at Davin with narrowed eyes.

"_You! _Now I'm gonna-"

"What. Beat me into a pulp? Hah! Fat chance." Davin snickered.

However, having traded a knowing glance behind the young man, both girls struck simultaneously. Attacking the young man's midsection, their tickling almost sent him over the balcony several times as he laughed hysterically.

Now laid out on the balcony on his back, out of breath as both attackers gave each other a high five above him, Davin finally regained the strength to speak.

"You guys... *pant pant* are the _worst_... EVER..."

"..._of all time!_" Both girls gleefully exclaimed in unison as they pulled him up.

"Yeah, that."

"That was fun," Blake coolly concluded, smirking at the flustered victim.

"And I'm sowwy, Vin", Yang began innocently, "but that's what you get for rejecting _moi!_"

"Uh huh. I'll get you back for that. _You_, my lil' sun dragon, will beg me for mercy!" The young man stuck his tongue out at the giggling brawler.

"Is that a pwomise?" Yang replied innocently again but now wiggling her eyebrows suggestively and biting her lip.

"I think I understand what Yang means by 'practice' now!" Blake exclaimed, hiding her own giggling with her hand.

"Hey guys! You three up there?" The sudden voice called their attention over the balcony.

Jaune.

"Yea! What's up!" Davin replied calling over the balcony edge.

"The sun's down! Time to meet Seul's contact!"

With a few more playful punches between the three friends, Yang, Blake and Davin rejoined the now-rested group as the three teams made their way back into Dorme.

* * *

"The distraction was cut down too soon!" Cinder threw down a White Fang operative to the floor, anger blazing in her glowing eyes.

Her team and the remaining White Fang forces were currently located in an undisclosed White Fang base in the forests near Dorme.

"How were they able to take out so many of our forces so soon!?" Emerald asked, peeved that she had been ordered to stay on the sidelines.

"We should have _been_ there!" Mercury called out, sympathizing with his teammate.

"_Not_... my call to make," the enchantress replied, regaining her composure as her communicator began to ring.

'_How many fell to the distraction in Dorme_.' The low, growling voice came through the line.

"None, General Darovit. One of the teams were able to hold off the main wave of the attack."

'_WHAT!_' The inhuman roar came through so loud that even the red-eyed girl could hear, _'how is that possible! Hundreds more were waiting in the trees!'_

"T-The Dark one of the Unbalanced led his team against them! And we never expected the arrival of the boy! He decimated the remaining forces in the forest before Crudus could pull them back!"

'_Incompetent fools! I will be sure to give due punishment to their leader for this failure. And where are the students now._'

"They seem to be moving. We'll be sure to follow them-"

_'NO. Gather the remaining forces. Send the Faunus leader to me. Hold your positions. Wait for the students to leave._'

"And then?"

'_Level the town. I want no record of this failure. Use the Paladins._'

"Very well," Cinder now resumed her normal composure, her confidence returned in her team's involvement and that of the giant war machines. "How are we to know the students will leave soon enough for us to strike undetected?"

'_Because they will come to ME... I have arrived. My forces will be in position soon. And I have special plans for the Dark one of the Unbalanced._'

The line went dead. Roman now came in from the outside of the threshold of the room, lit cigar in hand.

"Sooo, it seems our Witch of the West isn't the head honcho after all!"

Mercury quickly pulled out a pistol from Emerald's holster, pointing the weapon at the intruder's head.

"Seriously, let's just waste him now, it'll make us all feel a whole lot better!" The grey-haired assassin exclaimed hotly.

"Mercury."

He reluctantly put the gun down at his leader's rebuke, returning it to its holster. The criminal however hadn't even flinched, only moving to take another puff of his cigar and chuckling as Mercury did as he was told.

"As for you," Cinder now directed herself to the man in the bowler hat, "be glad I put in Junior in the town square and not _you_."

"Hmph," Roman casually replied, "Where _is_ the idiot, anyway?"

"Disappeared. Retreated back to his club, most likely," Mercury replied with contempt.

"Yes. We will make sure Emerald and Mercury take care of him..." Cinder decided out loud, "...and Roman?"

"Yes, Number _Two?_"

Cinder sneered at the remark, but continued anyway.

"I believe it's time you know what you need to know."

The criminal smiled cruelly.

* * *

_**The Valean War  
**__TPS (c) 2014_


	28. Vol 1-26: The Cryptic, Pt 1

**Chapter 26: Chapter 26: The Cryptic, Pt 1**

* * *

**A/N: And so, I have begun a new job! New developments in life, that's all. No writer's block or lack of motivation or anything :) I write every chance I get (Without risking my job hah)! **

**So for now, for the sake of keeping updates somewhat frequent, I'll keep chapters at around 3-4k words ;) if anyone has experience with juggling writing and work and has advice about optimum chapter length, please let me know! :D**

**in any case, enjoy!**

**Chapter 26 starts now!**

* * *

The twelve students made their way along the greying town behind their silent guide, passing only few bystanders on their way to their unknown destination.

'Hmm...much less people out in the evening than I remember. Must be because of the White Fang having settled in...' Jaune thought to himself as he followed his long-time friend through the growing night.

Having rapidly made their way silently through a more derelict part of town, Seul finally came to a halt in front of a large corner building made of brick. The large windows lining the entire first floor of the three-story building were fogged over revealing its long period of disuse, much like many of the other buildings surrounding it in the neighborhood.

Looking up, Jaune saw the tattered, aged sign which many years ago must have had the ability to actually light up.

Flynn's Arcade.

"The old arcade? He's been here this whole time?" The white knight asked the silent boy somewhat incredulously. The boy merely nodded in response.

"_Who's_ been here this whole time?" Ruby echoed in a strained whisper, as if a loud enough sound would disturb the quiet neighborhood around them and wake it into a frenzy.

"The door's locked. We'll have to find another way in." Ren quietly observed as he tried the large double-paned glass doors.

"No, no. Nothing's _ever_ locked." The boy spoke up, letting out a small grin as he took a few steps back into the intersection.

Then to everyone's surprise, the boy crouched down and launched himself several dozen feet into the air, extending his umbrella at the apex of his leap and floating safely onto the roof.

"Um...did Seul just leap about forty feet through the air _flatfooted?_" Pyrrha asked in disbelief.

"Never seen that done before, and I've seen a lot!" Sun commented as the students turned to hear the front doors unlocking.

Seul now stepped out to almost a dozen questioning gazes. He looked over to the currently smug white knight.

"Wanna tell 'em, Jaune?"

Jaune now turned to the group.

"Honestly Seul, I never thought you'd be able to do it. We used to practice (and fail) all the time as kids! But guys, this is technically something we can all do...actually," Jaune paused as he remembered a certain detail of the dream he used to have, "something _every_ Hunter used to be able to do before The Great War."

"Impossible!" The Heiress retorted, "the instructors at Beacon, or at the very least our _history_ books, would've given detailed accounts about that kind of ability!"

"Not according to Qrow. Remnant is full of secrets, Princess," the boy replied, eliciting a scowl from Weiss.

"He's right, Weiss," Jaune continued, "these kinds of abilities were held back from the public after the war so no one could misuse that power..."

"You mean _Hunters and Huntresses?_" She replied sharply.

"Partly... But mostly so no one who would want to turn them against each other could misuse it." To avoid questioning, the white knight quickly finished, "Point is, with focus...we could all do this, right now."

"Then why don't _you_ do it, hmm? Show us." The snow-haired girl calmly challenged.

Jaune now seemed to hesitate. Of the two, Seul was obviously going to be the one to grasp the ancient technique well before the white knight. Jaune, after all, had received a broken arm from his attempts as a child, much to his family's chagrin.

"Umm...uh, okay."

Seul now glanced at Jaune sternly, a look of determination in his eyes.

"Jaune. Just like teacher said. Don't focus your energy outward, as if it were a barrier. Everyone teaches you students to focus your energy outward. It's more than a barrier. It's power. Focus your Aura _up_."

"R-Right..." Jaune replied nervously, "should be easy..."

"You can do it now. You seem stronger than I remember. I bet it was you who took out Cyn and his crew." Spurred on by his friend's encouraging words, Jaune decided to give it a go.

But after several determined but failed attempts, he was beginning to wish he hadn't.

Pyrrha, however, having been struck with an idea, made her way towards the knight, providing a reprieve to the awkward situation.

"Jaune," Pyrrha called the perspiring knight's attention as she also put her hand on his shoulder, "do you remember the events on the rooftop? When you first projected your Aura?"

"Uh huh..." The white knight replied, panting lightly.

"Well...maybe you need to imagine yourself in a life-or-death situation. The reaction may help trigger a response."

"But I don't see how I can do that right now...I'm not in any real danger."

Suddenly, a pink grenade went off a few feet from Jaune, causing him and the Spartan to jump in alarm.

"I can help with that, Mr. Fearless Leader~!"

Jaune turned to the orange-haired girl who had her grenade launcher in hand.

"Nora! I-I _really_ don't think that's necessary!"

"It's okay~!", Nora continued advancing as she transformed Magnihild into hammer form with an unnerving grin, "I'll only swing once! I'll go for the legs~!" Pyrrha instinctively stepped back to give Jaune space to run.

He now understood how Davin felt upon meeting Yang the first time.

However, instead of taking off in a full sprint, he crouched down with eyes shut. Focusing his Aura into his legs, they began to glow white before he opened up his eyes, target in sight.

"YAHHH!"

Launching himself several feet over the full height of the building into the air, he flipped around awkwardly before landing on the roof in a heap. The students looked up at the roof, listening for signs of life.

"...made it!" Upon hearing the strained voice, Seul couldn't help chuckling.

Not just at his friend, but also in realization that the 'encouragement' wasn't Nora's idea. As she walked back to her original spot, she high-fived a grinning Ren, proud of the execution of his plan.

"I guess it's _your_ turn, Weiss," Ren casually stated as he and his girlfriend grinned at the heiress.

"Hmpf. Fine! There won't be any need for 'additional motivation' in _my_ case."

She strode over to the spot where Jaune once stood and mentally prepared herself.

'Okay. Shoulders back. Chin up. Right foot forward...not _that_ forward. Control the breathing, aaand...'

Giving herself the internal motivation just to be sure, she let the experience of a certain royal test race through her mind. The cause of her distinctive scar, Weiss recalled how the fateful crushing blow from her giant armored opponent had spurred her to move faster, fight harder, jump higher.

Locking Myrtenaster into the blue, instead of casting a blue gravity-glyph, instinct drove her to absorb it, glowing blue before releasing the tension in her legs and soaring through the air before landing gracefully on the roof parapet.

"See? Simple." She looked down at the impressed students, but her voice wasn't condescending anymore. Almost downcast, actually.

"Alright," Seul began, quite impressed himself, "let's give it a go, people."

Whatever the heiress had thought of, it must've been a difficult experience.

Pyrrha now stepped up, and readying herself, thought of a certain very unpleasant encounter with a Deathstalker before her hands began glowing black. Pushing herself with great magnetic force against the tiniest metal particles in the earth, she too joined the heiress on the roof and ran over to proudly hug the still dizzy Jaune.

Blake now followed, and with a certain killer android in mind gained the response needed to shadow-vault herself onto the roof with relative ease.

Ren was about to take his place when Ruby appeared behind him, squeeing in excitement as she erupted in a flurry of rose petals upward towards the roof, adding some flare as she caught an outstretched bare flagpole with the tip of Crescent Rose and flipped herself around and over the parapet, landing nimbly on the edge.

"Okay, that was pretty good. Girl's got skill," Ren said to himself as he readied himself to go next.

He didn't get the chance, however, as a loud and gleeful shout rang beside him.

"HIYAH~!"

And using the combined power of her aura and the powerful Magnihild, Nora swiftly found herself on the roof as well with a literally ground-breaking hammer strike against the floor.

In reality, both girls had no fears. It was their seemingly boundless energy of which they easily took advantage with their newly discovered direction of exertion.

"Grr..." Ren, now a little peeved, turned to face the remaining students, "I. Got. Next."

Looking at the roof, the stoic now had all the emotional thrust necessary to pulse his aura to the ground, launching his frame up to the roof without a sound.

And one by one, the rest of the students leaped up to the roof after having discovered their hidden strengths until only Davin and Seul were left at street level. The boy looked at the young man with some amusement as he looked up dubiously, the other students calling him up to join them.

"What," the boy began with a chuckle, "you scared of heights or something?"

Davin glared at him.

"N-Not that I'm gonna make you do it!" The boy replied with some alarm, raising his hands in apology.

"I dunno," the young man replied looking back up, "I guess I have a thing against jumping when it has to do with heights? Can't explain it, it's weird..."

The boy opened the door, motioning the older student into the arcade as both promptly entered.

* * *

A few minutes later, both groups of teens found each other on the first floor.

The inside of the building didn't look much better than the outside. Dusty furniture covers and dust protectors covered the several isles of aged arcade machines which evidently had been out of commission for several years.

"Just look at the state of this facility!" The heiress fitfully began as the students made their way down the central dusty isle, "it's absolutely insufferable!"

"Uhh, Seul," Jaune began as he found himself actually agreeing with the snooty rapier-wielder, "you're sure this is the right place?"

"Pffft! What better place to hide the most advanced tech depot on this side of Remnant than in an abandoned cemetery of technology?" The boy had a point.

"The only thing I'm not sure about is if he'll actually want to _help_ you."

"Why wouldn't he?" The knight asked with some surprise. The boy sighed.

"Well...he's been a bit...dodgy...since the White Fang settled into Dorme. Doesn't really talk much to anybody. Even less than usual. Getting info from him will be tough."

Finally reaching a lone arcade console along the back wall of the arcade building, Seul came to a stop. Davin mentally assessed the situation.

_No dust on the covers._

_No power cable._

_Circular tracks on floor in front of console._

_...Hidden door._

Seul threw off the dust covers, revealing an arcade console of times forgotten depicting several neon-lighted motorcycles engaging in an energy maze game of last man standing.

With the exception of the young man, the students softly gasped as the boy pulled the entire console off the wall like a swinging door, revealing a much cleaner and modern-looking steel hallway within.

As they descended the dimly lit metallic corridor, Davin noticed the disguised door close behind them as the group reached a small console on the side of the wall at the end of the narrow corridor.

Leaning in, Seul brushed his hair out of his eyes as dim green lights emanated from the console to scan them, soon replaced by a pulsing audio recorder line on the console itself. The students waited expectantly.

"Seul Sinclair."

As if the words were some sort of terrible charm, the corridor came to life, sprouting hideous and painful looking pistols and blasters from all angles at the panicking students. Mildly surprised, Seul returned his attention to the console.

"...and guests."

The weapons disappeared into the walls without further command. A large square portion of the steel wall now shrunk back and down, revealing an aged wooden door. Seul turned the doorknob and entered, beckoning the hesitant students to follow.

As they entered, Jaune looked around at what seemed a small ordinary room with a small desk along a side wall by what the limited light exposed. It seemed rather lifeless until-

"Hey Seul, ya daft muppet! Does this place look like a nightclub where you can bring visitors taggin' along all willy nilly!? Wots the meanin' o' this!"

A scrawny figure of a man then appeared in the dim room, suddenly pausing in his rant as he noticed the white knight who seemed to break his angry spell.

"Uh, er..._Jaune?_ Is that you, ol' chap?"

Jaune hesitated for a moment in his confusion, but quickly grinned in realization.

"Yea! And here I thought I would never see you in person again!"

As they greeted each other, the students could only look on in confusion as the blonde leader spoke to the man with the funny accent. It sounded a bit like Velvet's actually.

"Come over here, I have a few friends to introduce you to!" Jaune led the man into the light.

They looked in curiosity at the lanky man with messy black hair whom they now noticed couldn't be more than a year or two older than the rest of the group.

Wearing a faded green sweatshirt, he also wore brown cargo pants with several added pouches under a pair of black standard combat boots. Seeing how new they still looked, he doubtfully had ever engaged in combat with them. And instead of gloves, the stranger wore slim metallic mitts that only covered his thumbs, index fingers and middle fingers, each finger with a translucent pad at its end.

One feature that caught people's eye was the fact that _his_ eyes were practically hidden behind a complex pair of spectacles, each lens stacked over and above each eye seemingly with its own purpose and use.

"Well I'll keep it brief, birds and blokes. Name's Cyrus Fergusson. Dreadful thing. You may call me Cipher."

Pausing for a moment in his emphatic introduction, he seemed to stare right at Blake.

"And 'ello, _Beautiful!_ Wot might _your_ name be, Faunus-lady?" He lifted his spectacles, revealing hazel eyes that were bright green around the edges. Blake seemed both flattered and uncomfortable at the direct attention.

However, taking a few steps forward as if entranced, he merely moved the now surprised catgirl away to better contemplate the subject of his admiration.

Velvet started back, blushing deeply as the cryptic gingerly took her hand in his in reverential greeting.

"M-Me!? U-Um my name is, V-Velvet!"

"Wot a fitting name, luv! Crafted by the Great Monty himself up above, no doubt! And with a voice as soft as the name, too!"

Stricken by the lovely compliments, Velvet seemed to relax as she shyly responded.

"O-Oh? How sweet!" She began with a small chuckle, "Thank you, Mr. Fergusson."

"Please, you may simply call me Cipher!" The cryptic replied with an ear-to-ear grin. Blake and Yang simply looked at each other and shrugged. It was nice for the bunny-eared girl to have an admirer for a change.

Returning his attention to the white knight, he continued.

"Look 'ere, mate. I should probably apologize for kinda disappearin on ya after that little favor you asked before you left Dorme...but meh."

Jaune _had_ been disconcerted after Cipher originally disappeared...he had never gotten to thank him for supplying the transcripts granting the blonde leader admission into the academy. However, he knew that the acknowledgment was going to be the closest thing to an apology that he was going to get.

"You see, I had to upgrade the framework! Look, made some improvements after goin' underground."

Stepping to the center of the tiny room, the cryptic flicked up both arms enthusiastically, each pad on the tips of his fingers lighting up as he flicked both arms outward. This caused the walls of the small dark room to seemingly expand rapidly, bright white lights now illuminating a rather large control center with sizable computer screens completely surrounding the small desk in the center. It looked like a command center of a deep-space vessel...

"Of course, ol' Seul and me had ourselves some housecleanin to do after those barmy berks calling themselves the White Fang and whatnot practically _ran this place over up above!_ I cried like a baby, a hungry, angry baby!-"

"Oh, stop." The annoyed boy interjected in the rant, "They never got close. Besides, it finally got you around to finishing the holographic camouflage."

"...But _still!_"

Entranced by the amount of tech, the students had now begun gawking at the machinery in the room while the cryptic ranted. Weiss, however, stopped at a smaller display covered in prose.

"Is this RWBY fic!?"

...

**_TO BE CONTINUED..._**

* * *

**A/N: Best place to split an otherwise very long chapter, heh :) I'll be uploading the other half later today, feel free to let me know about any ideas or stuff! So hang tight, peeps! R&amp;R, comment, have a cookie! The next chapter will be up soon :D **

**Happy Reading!**


	29. Vol 1-27: The Cryptic, Pt 2

_**The Cryptic, Pt. 2  
**__-XXVII-_

* * *

"This is _RWBY_ fic, isn't it!"

Having called his attention, the cryptic merely looked over and pointed at the screen hovering in front of the angry heiress with a lit finger, flicking his wrist to move the display to the main monitor.

"Why yes it is," Cipher began as he rounded his desk, opening a drawer full of snacks, "a rather good one, really! 'The Shining Knight's Pain as Team RWBY Reacts to Massages of Vermilion'!"

He began popping in some of the home-made snacks as he casually began to read the newest chapter, not knowing that the starring team in question stood behind him, avidly reading as well.

Jaune was looking at the strange snacks that looked like thick dumplings stuffed with meat and cheese.

"What are those things?"

"Eh?" The cryptic replied, half turning to face the white knight, "These things? Oh, I make them! Tiny bits of heaven they are, I call 'em Hot Pouches! Every hacker's must-have snack if ya ask me!"

"They look more like Pockets to me."

"Meh, to each his own! I've got some more Hot Pouches if ya want. Pepperoni and cheese, peanut butter and red sap jelly, and even some tuna... ones... hey, where'd the tuna pouches go?"

Blake stood behind him with her team, munching on the last of the tuna pouches... or pockets. It seemed like fair retaliation for earlier, along with the rude naming of the White Fang.

Her teammates, however, stood mesmerized as they read on.

"Didn't know the author had posted a new chapter..." Yang commented absent-mindedly.

"I know... I really need to keep up with this fic better..." Ruby stated, unable to keep her mouth shut as the chapter reeled her in.

"This is actually one of the best I've seen. The author seems to know how we get along pretty well..." Blake mused as she resumed her reading.

Weiss, however, seemed to have none of it as the fic now led into another White Rose scene, causing the heiress to blush. She was not about to read this type of chapter with company.

"Why are all of you dunces even _reading_ this! This is absurd!"

"I'll tell ya wots absurd," the cryptic said as he continued reading, "The insane fight scene as team RWBY competes for the Shining Knight's attention! Bunch o' Mary Sues if ya ask me, but ahh, these ladettes always bring me the very best violence..."

"Do you even know who you're _talking_ to!?" Weiss was now fuming as usual. The Cryptic turned to look at the angry princess as the other students began reading the fic as well.

"Not in the slightest, Snow Angel."

So _that's_ where Jaune got his terrible nickname skills from.

"Weiss Schnee! Heiress of the Schnee Dust Company!"

Cipher paused for a moment.

Suddenly gasping in awe, all of the extra lenses of his spectacles dropped into place in front of his eyes to fully analyze the proclaimer of said claim.

"Same scar under the eye, same white dress complete with combat skirt, same powerful family emblem... Great Monty, so you are!" He dropped his hot pouch as he looked over the four young students, jaw dropping lower as he matched each detail of every girl with those of the story.

"Weiss, Ruby, Blake, Yang... by the great hordes of RoosterTeeth under Monty above, you're all actually _real!_"

"You already said that," Blake remarked with an eyebrow raised in vague amusement.

Yang, seeing an opportunity to gain information, now stepped in with warm enthusiasm.

"That's _right_, Cipher! We're definitely real! What made you think we weren't?"

"W-Well I thot your band of femme fatales was a bunch of OC protagonists! I guess it makes sense now that I think about it... the author _is_ from Beacon, after all."

"He is?" Ruby quipped in surprise.

"Aye, the IP address doesn't lie."

"Wait," Davin began, catching on to Yang's angle, "How did you get those fics here when we're well outside the kingdom of Vale?"

"Well Mister Guv'nor, once it's uploaded into the Dustnet it's reborn into a fledgling little signal, joining all the rest in a world of cybernetic signals of information. And ya can't stop the signal, guv'nor! Everything goes somewhere, and _I_..." The cryptic paused for dramatic effect, "go _everywhere_."

"Pfft! Big words for a hacker!" the brawler teased, knowing she could still get Cipher to continue, "so you got some kid's story from a school archive, that's not exactly _saying_ much!"

"Oho!" the cryptic began with wounded pride, "Sorry to dissapoint, Bonnie Blondie, but there's much more than that! That school of yours hides more than ya think!..." Yang lifted an eyebrow with a smug smirk.

'Gotcha!' she thought to herself in triumph.

"Oh really, 'Mister Universe'? Do tell!"

"Well..." he began, images on his spectacles whirring as much as on the screens around him, "There are many lil' tidbits, like Jauney-boy's recently discovered monger of an Aura, or mister Rosfield's uncanny resemblance to a bloody gaping black hole!"

"How do you know who I am?" The young man asked, now startled.

"I know who you all are... Davin," the cryptic began as the screens around them stopped whirring, displaying the full transcripts of every student in the room.

"Wot? You thot these were just an ordinary pair of spectacles? A flimsy pair of Ray-Bans? These lil things be their own proper Appledore, I tell ya! Hah!"

"You watch too many British shows..." The boy commented, unamused.

"Really, just a few letters difference and my name could be Magnussen!"

"Except _he_ gets shot in the head by Sherlock."

"..._terrible_ season finale if ya ask me."

"Al-_right!_" Yang began with a facepalm as Jaune's friends began to digress once again, "You've proven your skill, Cipher! Truth is, we're here because we need your help and don't have much time to go off on a tangent, ya know?"

The cryptic now turned to the white knight with some suspicion. Jaune nodded.

"She's right. We do need your help, Cyrus. The entire kingdom may depend on it."

After another moment, Cipher now returned his gaze to Yang, seemingly indecisive as he had a bushy eyebrow raised.

"_Well_... for a quartet of ravishing celebrities such as yourselves... meh, why not?" The cryptic smiled in agreement.

"Great!" Ruby began, excited that results were beginning to form, "So, what can you tell us about the CCT? We think someone may have messed with it somehow..."

"Ooh, _that_," the messy-haired fellow stated vaguely as he sat in his leather chair in front of the middle desk, flicking a map of Remnant to the main screen, "Gotta tell ya, roughest piece of code I've ever come by in all me days."

The four kingdoms lit up on the map. However, the one for Vale lit up red, a small chess queen blinking on it.

"Code? You mean like a virus?"

"Not _just_ a virus, Lil Red," the cryptic continued, "a multi-layered algorithm which has grown to effectively wipe out communication all around Remnant."

The students froze in shock as the cryptic now continued.

"It's bad. It even crashed most of my systems, blinding me to the invasion of the White Fang and presence of any other energy forces in the area."

"Energy forces?" Davin asked curiously.

"Yeees, _forces_, guv'nor! Look, let me pull up this here archived rendering from a few weeks back," he pulled up an old map of the kingdom of Vale, a few white and black dots standing out, "See these? Energy spikes. Massive ones caused by Aura output. They'd be up to date if it weren't for the virus having crashed my tracking systems, but you can see there's two types. And as I've learned, one is you, the other one is Jauney-boy."

"There's a third type," Davin said, pointing at a purple dot on what looked like Beacon's courtyard.

"Yea... that one's left me a bit daft and confuddled," Cipher mused, scratching his stubbly chin, "That was the first of them all, but hasn't shown up since! And after that, you two started popping up on the map like itty bitty firecrackers!"

"Weird," Jaune now spoke up, "Well it'd help if we could take out that virus to see what's going on again. It seems that whoever has been controlling the White Fang has been involved in all this. Do you think you can take it down, Cyrus?"

"_Can_ I?" The cryptic scoffed mockingly.

Jaune glared at him.

"Of course I can!" Cipher now seemed offended, "but the algorithm is too nimble, I'll need much more power in order to produce a signal strong enough to take it out in one solid go!"

The students paused to think until Pyrrha now spoke up.

"_Well_, according to Ozpin, I believe we have two excellent power sources right here!" The red-head motioned to both Jaune and Davin.

"Yea, you make a good point there, Full Metal Huntress," Cipher replied as the Spartan deadpanned at the familiar nickname, "But there are a few things they need to know about their auras, as they are potentially world-ending forces as I'm sure you know."

"_Huh?_" the two of the Unbalanced said at the same time.

"Yep. Boundless information, the beauty of unlimited access. You can thank your professors for that, sending each other encrypted memos with Game Boy security about you 'Unbalanced' blokes, heh! _First_," Cipher held up a finger with every counted point, "if you two combine the forces of your auras or semblances too much, Remnant explodes! _Second_, Guv'nor, if you have a mental, emotional or nervous breakdown and your aura goes all sixes and sevens, Remnant dies... then explodes!"

"How _comforting_," Pyrrha replied in a rare show of sarcasm.

"Well the only _good_ news about all this is that Jauney-boy here has still only begun to tap into his aura. Did ya know, Jauney, that you may be able to commandeer several of those lil projections of yours at a time? Could be quite useful!"

"I'll keep that in mind," Jaune replied, disinterested in the fun facts, "But can we _power_ this thing?"

"_Yeees_..." The cryptic began reluctantly, then sighed, "There are two bio-pods I experimented with downstairs to see if those bloody Grimm that Seul brought after a hunt could help boost the computer's power... I take it you've killed Grimm before, Huntress?"

Pyrrha nodded.

"And you've noticed how those wisps of black smoke come out of their freshly dispatched carcasses?"

Another nod.

"Dark energy. All of it. Pure, unrefined. It's their life source, and we tried to harness it, but the pods need the specimen to be alive... and we were _not _about to bring a live one of those buggers down here!"

"Alright then, fair enough," the young man interjected, needing to be sure of what they were about to agree to, "and if this works, you'll be able to get out a strong enough signal to wipe out this global virus?"

"From here to the eyes and the ears of Remnant itself, that's my motto... or it might be if I start having a motto."

"Good enough. Then let's do it," Davin declared, ready to get it done.

* * *

Descending with the group of students through another thin metallic flight of stairs off the side of the control room, Cipher stopped in front of a large concrete door directly beneath the control center.

"The rest of you blokes will have to wait upstairs, it's cramped enough down 'ere already. Seul," the cryptic continued, glancing at the boy, "find a way to... I dunno... _entertain_ them."

"Riiight," the boy replied, rolling his eyes.

Taking most of the students back up to the main room, Seul began to make gestures over the top of the small desk as if it were a large touch-screen tablet, bringing up the fic that Weiss had previously discovered.

Pulling out the rest of the Hot Pouches (or Pockets) out of the drawer, the students took their seats in the room and began reading the new chapter with gusto. Except Pyrrha, who had read it already.

Or Ren. It was his favorite fic as well.

Yet, as much as Pyrrha was tempted to reread it, she had another much pressing matter on her mind. How was Cipher going to use Jaune and Vin to power the machine?

The Spartan looked over at the brawler and immediately could tell she was thinking the same thing.

"Should we go back down?" She asked the worried blonde.

"Yeah."

Both girls began to make their way to the dimly-lit antechamber beneath the control room.

Entering the small concrete room, both stopped in surprise as they looked at two large metallic cylinders along the far end of the room, each connected to a mass of wires that spread out along the walls and to a small control pad between them.

The cryptic had turned to them, armor and shirts in hand of both young men who were now in each cylinder. He merely shrugged.

"It's about to get really hot in here. It was either ditch the shirts or risk burning these to a flaming crisp and having _no_ shirts to speak of. They each took the first option."

Pyrrha blushed at the thought.

"Umm... I-I think we should stay. That way we can help them when they exit the pods," the Spartan reasoned meekly.

"No can do! Unless you and Bonnie there are willin to take off every scrap of metal ya got on ye! The electromagnetic currents in here will superheat most metal in seconds, cooking their possessor in a rather unpleasant... way..."

His voice trailed off in surprise as both Huntresses began disposing of every article of metal they had.

Ditching her weapon, her jacket due to its metal rivets, and skirt-belt due to its buckle, Yang was left in her boots, short shorts, yellow tube top and orange infinity scarf.

"No need for _this_ thing if it's gonna get as hot as he says it will!" The blonde ditched the scarf too, throwing the heap of items outside the door.

Pyrrha was much more nervous about it, gingerly removing her cuisses and boots along with her weapon, bracelets, and circlet before placing her things outside the room as well.

Her hair down and legs and feet now bare, she then undid the back of her armor, removing the leather-bound top half of her armor which was decorated with bronze, leaving her in her v-cut bronze colored top and red miniskirt.

As she placed the armor outside, the red-head couldn't help a smirk before responding to Yang's questioning gaze at the only article of bronze she was still wearing.

"It's a combat top, unique to Mistral as a superior-strength material as strong as steel but as flexible as any fabric... it's _not_ made of metal."

"Oh!" Yang quipped a bit too quickly, "so that's how you move so easily in a match!" She had to admit that the Spartan looked good without her usual attire. Between both girls, the feeling was mutual.

The brawler was still grinning until she turned to look at the gawking hacker in the middle of the room. She narrowed her eyes at him, pointing at her face.

"Eyes up _here_, buddy."

Clearing his throat, he continued his original train of thought.

"R-Right! Yes! Um, where were we? Ah yes! Energize the pods!" He raised his voice so that the two guys in the pods could hear, "Oi! When ye hear the machines start up, project those auras of yours! Just keep control of yourselves, don't blow something up! Ye hear me?"

Silence.

"Fabulous!"

Scurrying by the two gorgeous students, the cryptic made his way out the door and placed the guys' items on the staircase, pausing before he continued walking to give one more word of advice.

"Stay safe, you two. Don't touch anythin that looks important! I'll close the door soon, just hang tight until the pods pop open. Ye both should be fine!"

He walked up the thin staircase and Yang listened with Pyrrha as he met up with the rest of the group above them.

"_So_, ya seem to like the fic after all, eh Ice Queen? I bet it's based on a true story!"

"Oh, shut up!" A distant flustered voice rang through to the antechamber. Obviously Weiss.

The two Huntresses looked at each other in amusement as they heard faint complaints rise around the floor above them as Cyrus took control of the room to commence the power sequence, the concrete door now closing behind them.

"Here goes nothing," the brawler, Spartan and cryptic muttered under their breath as he pushed the ignition button.

Jaune had been in one of the pods, mostly oblivious to what was going on around him and asking himself what was taking so long. Davin was in the other pod, in much of the same situation.

However, they had heard part of Cipher's final bit of advice, and once the machines whirred to life, both went to work.

Yang and Pyrrha watched in awe as the pods began to shake, each glowing with the power seeping out from within. Finally, points of light began coursing through the wires all around them, lighting the antechamber in a dazzling display of color.

"Wow, they really doddled through that one, didn't they?" The cryptic said to himself as the group around the small desk saw the power level charts on the main monitor go to 100% in seconds.

"Oi! What'd I say about goin full monty down there! Ye did it already!" The cryptic called down to the antechamber.

"Why aren't they stopping?" Ruby asked, getting more worried once the floor started shaking. Cipher was beginning to worry, too.

"Guys, shut it down! _NOW!_"

The two young women inside the chamber began to see how the overload of power was beginning to warp the pods, one pod bulging out like a shaken soda can, the other twisting and shrinking as if it were being crushed. They began to hear muted yelling from within.

"We gotta do something!" Yang called out in alarm as Pyrrha raced to the small control panel.

"Wait, I think I found a switch!" Pyrrha shouted, pressing a few keys and slamming a fist on a large button.

To their relief, the pods began to power down as the concrete door unlocked and came down as well, revealing a group of students on the other side, somewhat surprised to see the two girls in a mild state of undress.

Running to get their weapons, Pyrrha and Yang pried open the warped doors of each pod, popping them open to find plumes of smoke and vapor escape from within from two very drained individuals.

The group was equally surprised to see Jaune and Davin in similar states of undress. Pyrrha carried out the white knight who had on a muscle shirt under his hoodie as he always did. Vin, however, didn't believe in those things, an arm around Yang as he limped out of the pod topless, much to Yang's guilty enjoyment.

"Hey Jaune," the winded young man called over to his fellow leader, "Let's never. Do that again..."

"_Ever_," the weary blonde leader finished his thought for him.

However, upon realizing the state of the redhead supporting him, Jaune suddenly didn't feel so weary, the feeling of so much skin-on-skin contact sending electric shockwaves through his body and making him lose his footing.

"P-Pyrrha!?"

"Jaune?" The Spartan grunted as she tried to support him to keep them both from falling.

"Wha-What are you w-wearing!? I mean... _not_ wearing!?" He straightened up, adrenaline and a whole slew of hormones flooding his system, practically re-energizing him on the spot as he looked at his girlfriend who was wearing nothing but a miniskirt and strapless bronze top. Pyrrha blushed crimson.

"Well, we were not about to leave you two down here alone, and to be here Yang and I needed to remove all articles of metal."

Jaune gave her v-cut top the same quizzical look Yang had given minutes before. She blushed even harder.

"_Not_ made of metal."

"Oh."

"You know," Pyrrha now began with a smirk, "this is the part where you say thanks and kiss me..."

"Ah."

Jaune, no longer able to form whole words, could only smile as he wholeheartedly approached and showed his gratitude to his beloved partner.

Though everyone else, including Davin, watched the adorable exchange with uncontrollable giggling, Yang looked up at the young man slung around her shoulder, seemingly offended.

"And why don't _I_ get any sugar!? Just cuz you think you're Mister Big, Bad Unbal-"

Of course Davin wasn't gonna let her finish that thought, laying on a thick coat of gratitude on the blonde brawler as well.

As soon as she saw her sister's infamous roving hands come into play over the young man's toned torso, however, Ruby decided they had let the two couples have enough fun.

"Okay, _okay! _Let's see what happened upstairs now!..."

The four students reluctantly went to the doorway to pick up their items and redress.

Moving upstairs, the group now found lines and lines of code running over every screen in the room, a large picture of a queen chess piece with a loading bar beneath it. The young man positioned himself next to the hacker.

"Is it working?"

"HAH!" The cryptic began with a victorious laugh, "You can bet your blimey bonnet it is! This takes the biscuit I tell ya!"

Running around the room to check every screen and system, Cipher returned as the loading bar under the queen filled up, prompting an animation of a king chess piece falling from above and crushing the queen piece in a cloud of dust.

"Now what?" The crimsonette asked in question.

"Look..." Blake replied, her gaze on the main monitor.

The rendering of the area around Vale reappeared, black and white dots and lines appearing on fast forward as the system updated its data. A black dot when Davin lost control in Beacon, a white dot when Jaune had arrived at Dorme and subdued Cyn, a white line when Jaune had raced to Beacon and back, and another black dot when Davin met Seul.

"Looks like we're set to restart communication all around Remnant!" Neptune proclaimed happily.

Every screen and system now booted up as normal, the cryptic now slapping the young man on the shoulder in joy.

"Ya can't stop the signal, guv'nor. You can _never_ stop the signal! Whoo!"

The students now surrounded the relieved leaders to congratulate them, all of them in high spirits until they noticed the lone bunny-faunus, pale as paper with a shaking finger pointed at the main monitor.

"G-g-guys? L-_Look!_"

The students, boy and hacker watched the rendering in growing horror as the entire forest around Beacon began to change shape, color and form.

It was now a giant black dot.

"What in the name of Monty Oum..." The cryptic said to himself in a hushed whisper.

"We need to get over there," Jaune began, "Now."

Without needing to be told twice, the students exited with Seul in tow, Cipher staying to man the comms as he gave everyone a special in-ear comm device on their way out. Minutes later, they were in the airship taking off.

No sooner had they begun fading into the broken-moonlit horizon than the forest trees all around the landing site began shaking involuntarily. Followed by the sounds of large machines powering up.

Dozens of them.

* * *

_**The Valean War  
**__TPS (c) 2014_


	30. Vol 1-28: The Calm Before the Storm

_**The Calm Before The Storm  
**__-XXVIII-_

* * *

The airship soared through the night, having automatically been set to full speed by its worried captain.

Inside, the troubled students sat in the main cabin, a pair sharing the isle seat on either end of the center isle so that all twelve could converse along three of the rows comfortably as the boy stood at the end of the isle.

But by the look on Jaune's face, the passengers were anything but comfortable.

"Have you ever seen any readings like that, Seul?"

The boy looked agitated, as if the amount of speaking and other events that day were draining him to the point of frustration. He sighed loudly before speaking up.

"No. As I've said before, we hadn't even seen _any_ energy spikes until you two manifested..."

"There _has_ to be something to explain it," Neptune mused as he looked to his white-haired neighbor for any additional ideas, "maybe it's some kind of echo left from Vin's breakdown or something..."

The young man glared at him.

"It could be!" The blue-haired student protested.

"Vin, Neptune makes a valid point," Weiss worriedly commented, defending her neighbor, "Couldn't it be that your original... outburst... may have left some kind of aftershock?"

"I don't think so," Davin replied, "it doesn't make any sense, an aftershock's effects would've been obvious to our surroundings after it happened the first time..."

"I think we _all_ know what it must be," the cat-eared faunus commented from behind Sun, "We simply don't want to admit the possibility."

The somber mood only thickened as the students silently agreed. The boy, however, now took the fore.

"Guys. Blake is right. We know what has a dark energy signature and we know it can't be Davin. We know that such an energy signature, then, is impossible to be so large unless sparked by large numbers of creatures. And we _know_ what those creatures are."

The students looked at the usually quiet boy, giving him their attention as stern emotion began coming out through his voice.

"We're talking about _Grimm_. Most likely, _lots_ of 'em. We all know it. We all need to accept it. But this is what you've all _trained_ for."

He gazed at Jaune.

"Hunters."

He glanced at Pyrrha.

"Huntresses."

He looked at Vin and Yang.

"_Teams_. This is what you guys are all about. Protecting the kingdom, right? Well there's a very real chance we all may have to do just that, very soon. This is the moment we gotta ask ourselves _why_ we do this. _Why_ you want to be Hunters and Huntresses."

The boy looked down, seemingly reflecting on something from long ago. And here he was now, the silent orphan, baring himself and his motivating force out for all of them to hear. The students had a good idea what _his_ two reasons were.

"_This_ is the moment we gotta think of our reason. Think of it hard. Remember it... cuz whatever happens, it may be the only thing that gets us through this..."

He sat down on a lone row of seats at the front of the cabin, his back now to the group. He had spoken enough, the boy wasn't about to strain his emotions trying any longer.

And judging by his breathing, which could only be distinguished by an acute sense of hearing, the young man and cat-faunus could tell that Seul couldn't continue speaking even if he tried.

Each student now settled in their respective rows with their partners deep in thought, no one having the desire to speak anymore.

* * *

Davin had the window seat this time, the blonde brawler resting her head on his shoulder for what felt like a few minutes in silence as the airship coursed through the sky.

He had known Yang for a few months already and had gotten to learning her little quirks and nuances on the way. Sure, this wasn't exactly a happy occasion, but as he looked at the sullen expression on her face while she looked out of the window over his shoulder, he could tell there was something else going through her mind.

He sighed, softly nestling his chin on top of her head.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

The blonde adjusted herself to get comfortable next to Vin before responding.

"Have you ever wondered why we do this?"

"Do what?"

"Why we're here, in Beacon. Why you wanted to become a Hunter?" She looked up at the young man with inquisitive lilac eyes.

"Hmm, that _is_ a good question..."

"So... 'Penny for your thoughts?'" She echoed with a small smile. With a light chuckle, the young man put his arm around his partner as he organized his thoughts in his mind.

"Well you know I'm kinda blank when it comes to my past. All I know is little things like how I'm an only child, I had a difficult past and that Rosfield was my mother's maiden name."

Yang caught that distant stare the young man would get whenever he talked about the subject, this time again just like every other.

"I _don't_ know where I came from. I _don't_ know how I got here. I _don't_ know who I really am... but there's one thing I _do_ know," he furrowed his brows as Yang kept watching him stare out the window to some infinitely far away place...

"I'm _here_. In a place I find dangerous, foreign, and all around unorthodox. But for some reason I possess all the skills necessary not just to survive, but to _thrive_. As if I'm meant to be _here_. As a Hunter. And if being one will help me unlock my past, then I won't let even a world of Grimm stop me."

He then turned to look at his intrigued partner with a grin, snapping himself out of his own dark cloud.

"And even if I never find out who I was, I know that I'll be doing something I do best alongside a certain gorgeous _someone_ I do it best with."

She lightly squeezed him in a hug of joy before he continued, "What about you, lil sun dragon? I bet it's been on your mind for some time now."

Yang sighed out loud, resting her head back on her seat cushion as she considered her words.

"The honest reason? I'm a thrill-seeker. I want to travel around the world and get wrapped up in as many crazy adventures as I can." Davin watched his partner uncharacteristically fidgeting in her seat as she continued, "And if I help people along the way, then that's even better. It's a win-win, y'know?..."

"I see."

He really did know her little quirks well enough to know when to dig deeper with her.

"_Buuut_..." He softly nudged her as a motion for her to continue.

"But," she echoed distantly, "there's more to it than that... I think. I mean... I don't know... But at least _you_ have something that drives you. I've just always, gone with the flow, ya know? And that's fine, I mean, that's who I am. I want a life where I don't know what tomorrow will bring. And that will be a good thing. Being a Huntress just lines up with that."

The young man listened intently, never letting his small smile fade as the blonde opened up to him in a rare moment of insecurity. But they could be this way with each other without worrying about any of that, which is what had let them get so close in the first place.

"You know what I think?" He finally asked, his smile drawing Yang's curiosity away from her insecurities, "You have the drive alright. Going with the flow is just the way you _are_, not the _reason_ you do things. You're a strong person, and your power is matched by your will, Yang..."

"But-"

"_But_," the young man continued, stifling her interruption, "I'm not talking about your Aura. That fire in you burns because you'll never relent in anything you do, a fierce determination that drives you and never lets you give up. And that thing you've _chosen_ is to help others, babe!" His smile now widened into a grin as he pointed at her emblem.

"That heart of yours really does burn, no doubt about it. The good in you, the love you have for your sister, your friends, the people, it all attests to that! I swear you must have the power of the Sun in your tiny frame!"

With a light chuckle and a look of mock offense, she punched him in the shoulder in retaliation. But he only laughed as he got to the point.

"The thing is... the Sun don't ask the world if it can shine, Yang. You want to be a Huntress because nothing in the world can stop you from doing it, because in that big heart of yours... right _there_... lies your power, your power for _good_. And _that's_ what drives you... and yea, an unquencheable thirst for adventure and stuff too!"

When he finished, he saw a new light glinting in her eyes, as if she had discovered something new about herself with his help. And for the first time Davin could remember...

Yang was speechless.

After a brief moment, with lilac eyes watering up only a little, she leaned in to him, giving him a kiss before resting her head once more on his shoulder as she had in the beginning.

"Ya know..." She finally began, "_that's_ why I like you, Davin. You don't just see things in people, you find the good stuff and bring it out. I may not know who you were, but I know who you _are_... and that's all I'll ever need, Vin..."

He rested his chin on her head, his whole being buzzing in satisfaction as he now knew what it was like to have had his heart touched. He would've continued in that position but-

'_Aw. Now that was truly top notch, mate! ...hey there, remember me?~_'

The ringing in their ears caused both to jump up in their seats in alarm.

'_Hellooo!~ Yea, it's yer old pal Cipher! Ya know, next time ya might wanna remember to hit that mute button on your ear-pieces before having a heart-to-heart on my bloody frequency!_'

"You gotta be kidding me," the young man muttered under a facepalm.

"Our bad, Cipher..." Yang meekly apologized as she blushed lightly.

'_Nah. It's all hunky-dory for me, I got a good page of mushy love quotes recorded outta that one!_'

The couple blushed deeper.

"Okay, man. But this conversation doesn't leave this circle, you understand?" Vin stated firmly.

'_Yea, yea. I cross me heart and hope to do whatever it is that people say. Ye have my word!'_

"Then _sod off!_" The blond brawler suddenly quipped into the earpiece with a surprisingly accurate phrase from Cipher's vocabulary, "cuz I'm going to make out with my boyfriend now!"

The line quickly cut out... surprisingly fast, actually. But the young man now looked at his partner with a mix of pride and surprise.

"I had no idea you spoke British, sunshine!"

"Oh, _belt up_, you dishy bovver boy!" She grinned as she leaned in to him again, making good on her word to the cryptic.

They hadn't realized that their conversation had been shared over every radio line... the other students by some unknown power from Monty's dust having kept quiet to hear the entire interaction without dying of laughter.

But now with higher spirits thanks to the affectionate duo, the students closed in to the Academy.

* * *

To the students' surprise, when they crossed into Vale, the spire from Beacon stood tall and seemingly unharmed.

"Well that's kinda weird..." Sun began as he looked out of the window in confusion, waking the peacefully sleeping form of Blake next to him.

"There doesn't s-seem to be any damage to the school," Velvet observed as she squinted to look through the night for any inconsistencies in the campus. Jaune and Pyrrha stood behind her with Ruby, each trying to explain what the anomaly in Flynn's Arcade could've meant.

"Maybe it really was an echo from Davin..." The crimsonette thought aloud.

"It does seem strange that everything would appear to be so peaceful," the redhead commented as she looked to her leader for an answer.

"Well, our scrolls have all been long dead," Jaune began, "so we're going to have to land and see what happens."

The twelve students sighed in relief as they exited the airship and found that everything was still in order, checking every hallway for signs of struggle as they made their way to the Headmaster's secondary office on the first floor.

"Do you think he's in there?" Yang asked as the students stopped in front of the oak door.

"Of course not! I really don't think the Headmaster would deprive himself of the sleep necessary to efficiently run this establishment..." The heiress spoke up matter-of-factly. But she was wrong.

"You may come in."

The calm voice from behind the door startled a few of the students. Jaune, Davin and Ruby decided to step in.

The three leaders opened the door and approached the center of the room, surprised to see the Professor calmly staring out into the arboretum with his back to the students and the lights off, the only light being from the broken moon hanging in the expanse above the glass part of the office.

"You all arrived early. I presume the operation in Dorme was as manageable as we had hoped?"

He seemed calm enough as he spoke with his back still to his students, but Davin sensed something was off. As a matter of fact, he had been sensing something _off_ ever since his re-entry into Vale, like having the feeling of someone standing next to you when no one was actually there.

He couldn't figure it out, which was why he hadn't brought anything up. But the Professor's distant demeanor didn't seem to help at all.

"Hardly!" The young leader proclaimed, "The second group turned out to be the White Fang! The attacks, the White Fang, the CCT, it's all connected!"

"We were even able to restore the CCT functions on our trip!" Jaune stated, which caused Ruby some discomfort as she remembered being told not to tell anyone about it.

The Headmaster, however, didn't move, remaining silent for a moment more. The other two students were beginning to catch on that something was amiss.

"We noticed," Ozpin finally began dryly, "and we appreciate your valiant efforts. I must ask, however... did you actually encounter any _Grimm_ during your visit, Miss Rose?"

"Um... no," the crimsonette responded with some surprise as she realized how strange that fact really was.

"Hmm," The Professor almost turned around. The leaders noticed he had only his cane in hand, no coffee.

"No matter. We hope that the infestation was indeed cleared out before your arrival, and I'm glad you've all returned safely. For now, I recommend you all get some rest. It is late. We will go through a full debriefing tomorrow morning after breakfast. You are dismissed."

Overjoyed by the prospect of rest, Jaune and Ruby decided to toss aside their feelings of uneasiness as mere exhaustion as they turned to walk out the door. Ruby turned back to Vin as Jaune opened the door, however, since the young man wasn't joining them.

"Don't worry Rubes, I just need a word with Headmaster, I'll be out to join you guys in a bit." Nodding once, the crimsonette exited after Jaune, closing the door behind her.

Now letting his frustration run freely, he stomped over to the Professor, standing right behind the older man and to his side next to the glass wall.

"You've gotta be kidding me if you're actually _serious_ that the fact we do not find a single Grimm on an assignment meant to exterminate a _Grimm _infestation is 'No Matter', Ozpin."

The Headmaster finally turned to face the young man, the moonlight dimly lighting up his seemingly serene face. Davin's instincts kicked into gear, sizing up the man in less than a second.

_Awake at night without coffee despite caffeine addiction.  
Small stress wrinkles around brow and corners of mouth, indicating prolonged frowning.  
He's been worried._

The deduction was accurate, but it didn't seem to make sense. Why would Ozpin be worried?

_Wait.  
Brow center unusually pronounced with wrinkles.  
Jugular pronounced on neck.  
Increased heart rate.  
Bittersweet scent in air.  
That's... fear?_

It couldn't be, but the signs were unmistakeable. Ozpin was _afraid_. The deduction only served to spur Davin's anger as he lashed out at the silver-haired man.

"There's something wrong here, isn't it? And you _know_ it, don't you!" The young man practically ranted but quietly enough so as not to call attention from the students still standing outside.

"Davin," the Professor began calmly, "there's no way to know for sure-"

"So you _do_ suspect there's something wrong! You can feel it _too_, can't you!" The young man was now fuming.

"Yes," the man began calmly, his affirmative response stalling Davin's rage at least for a moment.

"Just like I can feel the wrath within _you_. You have a vast amount of aura, Mister Rosfield, and I can see its properties have inevitably affected you as well. I sensed you coming the moment you entered Vale."

"What are you talking about? You're saying this is about me?"

"No," the center of his brow wrinkled again, his vein slightly pulsing along the side of his neck, "This is about something far _worse_ than you."

The young man paled, not expecting that kind of response. Ozpin continued.

"Davin... I've made more mistakes than any man, woman or child on this planet. And at this moment, I find myself hoping that my senses are making another. If what I'm sensing is even remotely true, peace as we know it will cease to exist."

"So what are you waiting for?" The young man asked impatiently.

"Look around you. Everything remains in its place," the Professor replied, "that counts for something."

"But so do your _instincts_, sir!" The young man countered, "we _have_ to do something about it!"

"As much as I too would love to end this situation once and for all, we must remember that this may go beyond Vale," the Professor advised, "Beyond Beacon. And if this truly is part of some unknown enemy's master plan for which we know not the final move, we mustn't be so bold. Nor can we risk the spread of panic."

"So you're saying that we just _wait_ around for some Harbinger of Doom to come knocking at our doors!?"

"I am _not!_" The Headmaster chided harshly, the first time Davin could remember the man losing his cool.

"Tell me, Mister Rosfield, when you prepare to go to war, which do you send in first? The flag bearers, or the scouts?"

"Don't expect me to humor you with a response," the young man replied darkly.

"I _expect_ you..." the Professor stated, calmly taking a moment to regain his composure, "to _rest_. There is no point lashing out at an invisible enemy who hasn't struck yet with fighters who can barely stay awake. Rest, and tomorrow rest assured that I will send out a team of scouts to inspect the area around Beacon."

"Who will you use?" The young man asked, barely reining in his fiery emotions.

"None of your teams. I will send a fresh group of students. Team CFVY has forged a reputation of excellence in reconnaissance, and I will be sure to inform their leader in the morning."

The young man glared at the Headmaster.

"Is that _understood_, Mister Rosfield?"

Davin exhaled sharply through his nose.

"Yes, sir."

"Then you may be dismissed."

The young man exited the room, joining the group of students as they made their way down the hall.

The Headmaster sighed, waiting until the group was well out of range for even the hearing abilities of the Dark one of the Unbalanced. He sighed as he returned his worried gaze outside the glass walls.

"They are so alike..."

* * *

Ruby and Jaune furtively examined the third leader, worried about his sudden change of spirit. The rest of the students had gone ahead to their dorms to get some rest, satisfied that the lack of events were enough to relax, according to their leaders.

"You okay, Vin?" Ruby asked as she put a hand on the young man's shoulder.

"What happened in there?" The blonde leader added, concerned about the cause of the young man's mood. Davin sighed.

"Nothing. Ozpin will be sending out Team CFVY tomorrow to scout the forests just to be sure about what we saw. I guess I just need some rest."

"You and me both, buddy," Jaune agreed with a reassuring grin, setting his two peers at ease.

"Hey," Ruby chimed, wanting to try a different subject, "has anyone reached Cipher? I haven't been able to contact him since Vin and Yang... I mean... since _we _were all on the ship..."

Davin looked at the crimsonette with a small smile and an eyebrow raised.

"Oh yea? And you were 'talking' to him on the ship?"

"Uhh... y-yea... I just wanted to contact him again to tell him we landed safely!" She ended her explanation with a large grin plastered on her face. Ruby was a terrible liar.

"Uh-Huh. _Suuuuure_..." He teased, pulling the girl in for another noogie as Jaune chuckled beside them.

"Ack! Away! Away I tell you! Protect me, Jaune!" The three merely chuckled as the young man let her go.

"Alright guys, I'm gonna hit the sack. I can barely keep my eyes open as-is, so I'll see you guys tomorrow. I guess Seul can stay in your dorm, Jaune. I recall the Magnihild Matress was pretty comfy!" the young man laughed believably as he parted ways from the other two leaders, making his way down a side corridor.

* * *

Unlike Ruby, Davin was an excellent liar. Though the interchange with the other two leaders had calmed him down a bit, Davin could still feel the darkness raging within him just underneath the surface.

'Ozpin's right. It really _is_ starting to affect me...' the young man thought to himself.

He needed to vent. He made his way out to the forest about a half mile from the school, entering a decent clearing in the woods. It was perfect.

His scroll, however, began to buzz. It seemed that somehow the device hadn't died - contrary to his previous assumption - and Davin now looked at it, reading the message from his caring blonde brawler.

_LSDragon: jus got in bed. feelin a bit irked. u ok?_

He had forgotten about how his emotions had been affecting Yang as well. Unlocking his aura had really connected the two, much like it was in Jaune and Pyrrha's case. He fumbled a bit with the scroll in the dark as he responded.

_Vin: Yeh. Just tired._

_..._

_LSDragon: K._

Davin waited a moment before putting his scroll away. Yang never texted a one-letter message without adding to it seconds later. Sure enough, it buzzed again.

_LSDragon: by the way, u still owe me a special practice session._

He smiled, which he made sure to express in his final message.

_Vin: ;)_

Putting his scroll away, he readied himself in the clearing. He had to get rid of all this negative emotion. It affected Yang and he wasn't about to let that happen.

Letting his eyes glaze over black, he pulsed out his aura in fierce waves all around him, sucking the life out of everything around the clearing. His anger, pain and frustration lashing out from within, his inhuman roars were unbridled and raged as his dark aura howled around him, almost swearing he could sense another presence within his field of consciousness.

"_AARGH! Whoever you are! I know you're out there!_" His booming angered yells suddenly began coming out in words as his inner thoughts viciously fought their way out, "_EERGH! Do your worst! I'm right here waiting! AND I SWEAR WHEN YOU DO, I WILL END YOU MYSELF!_"

His dark aura suddenly igniting and blasting outward in a small, black spherical energy cloud, he remembered Cipher's warning and quickly reeled in the dark energy with a final roar.

Looking around himself and panting heavily, the young man gaped at what was once a tree and grass-filled clearing which was now a large circular patch of dirt, having been stripped dry of any organic material whatsoever.

But he felt better. A _lot_ better.

Straightening out his shirt and patting his jeans dry of some dirt, Davin casually made his way back to Beacon.

But once he was out of the area, a few tress rustled along the edge of the blast radius. And in the darkness between them, a lone pair of eerie red eyes appeared. Not four, not eight. Just two.

The haggard, low breathing wasn't that of an ordinary Grimm, uncontrolled and rapid. It was calm, and paced.

And somewhere in the pitch black void of the forest within, there it was. Unseen, but menacingly present, a sick abomination to what should be a universal form of cheer.

A twisted black-fanged smile.

* * *

_**The Valean War  
**__TPS (c) 2014_


	31. Vol 1-29: First Blood, Pt 1

_**First Blood, Pt. 1  
**__-XXIX-_

* * *

Jaune and Ruby finally arrived to their dorms, each still pensive about the events of the day.

"I guess the best thing will be to get some rest," the white knight began as the two leaders faced each other in front of their respective dorms, "Tomorrow Ozpin will tell us what's what and we'll know what to do then."

The crimsonette sighed, a small smile appearing as she looked at where they stood, the location of so many conversations the two had had as leaders during the year.

"You know, Jaune," she stated with a growing grin, "I'm really proud of you..." The white knight smiled with a raised eyebrow at the unexpected compliment.

"Oh? To what do I owe such kind words?"

The young leader giggled.

"Oh nothing much, I just remember how we once sat to talk in this hallway..." she replied with a grin, "You weren't sure of your skills as a leader and neither was I but we learned how important our responsibilities were to our teams and look where we are now!"

"Yea, I remember," Jaune couldn't help but smile as he looked at his beaming young friend, "Do you regret any of it now?"

"Nope."

"Even with the crazy problems we've had?"

"Nope."

The blonde leader laughed, "Just like old times... never change, Ruby!"

"Nope! I sure won't, Vomit Boy!"

The blonde leader scoffed with a mock hurt expression, "Whatever, Crater Face!"

"It was just _one_ time!" she pouted in defense before both students broke out in laughter.

"Ruby, you'll always be my first friend in Beacon," the kind knight began with a hand on Ruby's shoulder, "And I want you to know I wouldn't have had it any other way, and... and... an-"

The knight lost his bearings and suddenly faltered as if he got hit by something from behind. Ruby had to catch him to keep him from falling forward.

"Jaune! Are you okay? What happened?"

"I... I uh- did you feel that?" He had felt like a wave of something had hit him out of nowhere, catching him off-guard. Suddenly, he now felt very tired, as if his limbs were made of lead.

"Uh... not really, Jaune..." The redhead replied lying, she had felt a faint chill down her spine, but it was probably just the cold air right?

"Jeez, haven't felt like this since the time I practically got knocked out by that blast when Vin and Weiss had their sparring match..." he was still trying to keep his balance, "I'm sorry, I guess we should probably get to bed..."

He zig-zagged his way back to his door, scanning his scroll and opening the door to his dorm.

"Gnite Ruby, see you later..." He waved at her with a weak smile before entering his room. He wandered directly to his bed, passing out nearly instantly on his pillow.

"Good night, Jaune..." She muttered feebly as she entered her own dorm and got ready for bed.

The young leader never bothered to look out her window to find a black, spherical energy cloud which had blasted outwards some moments before.

* * *

Sun and Velvet waited idly in Team VNDS' dorm, Velvet at her desk checking her healing supplies and cleaning Overlord while Sun had just decided to lay back on his bed, uncomfortable with the silence with only half the team in the room.

"_So_..." The monkey-faunus began, trying to start conversation with the shy healer, "We really dodged a bullet today, didn't we?"

She turned in her seat, meekly placing her arms on her legs as she now focused on the prospect of communicating. It never really came easy to her, she had gotten used to having a dorm to herself.

Of course, unless she was commandeering a surgical team or in the heat of battle.

"I-I guess we did..."

"Yeah... Can't help wondering what it was, that creepy black dot on the nerdy guy's computer screen looked like some real weird stuff, right?"

"...I guess so."

Seriously, talking to Velvet could be as tough as striking up conversation with Blake. Sun sighed out loud.

"Well one less fight ain't exactly something I'd whine about. Dumb Grimm can go eat cake for all I care!"

"I'm p-pretty sure Grimm don't eat-"

"Figure of speech, Velvet," Sun replied, having to hold back a small chuckle at that one, "Neptune and me will have to teach ya that one next time... wonder where the guy is, anyway."

The girl-faunus' ears perked up at the opportunity to offer useful information.

"Oh!" She began with a small smile, "I heard he went to the Forge to fix Yang's gauntlets..."

Sun grinned to himself.

"Heh, as if she woulda given him much of a choice!" he yawned loudly as he stretched out, his monkey tail straightening out in the stretch as well, "_Not_ an awesome job, but at the end of the day it's what we're here for!"

The bunny girl pouted as she paused for a moment to think, smiling as she came to a decision.

"That's true! It may not be an awesome job, b-but sometimes we have to do things like that while we find our place in Beacon... _I_ would know, I've been here two years..."

The faunus boy picked his head up off his bed with an eyebrow raised at the girl.

"Wait. What? You're a _second_-year student?"

"Yes..." She began with a light blush, "I never had a team my first year and my fighting wasn't quite extraordinary at the time..."

Sun glared at her pointedly, the girl blushing before correcting herself.

"...well, unless someone really made me _upset_. B-But my healing abilities were good and Headmaster agreed to let me work in the infirmary, on the condition that I get held back a year while I wait to join a team..."

"So you decided to get held back and watch all your friends go to second year?" Sun asked in amazement, partly at her actions and partly because she was opening up about it.

"Yea," she stated as she looked down sheepishly, "but I didn't really have many friends to miss me..."

"Then why stay?"

Velvet looked up at the persistent faunus boy before answering.

"Because it's Beacon. And because I love helping people, even if they sometimes don't return the feeling."

"Hmm. Fair enough."

"But honestly, the wait was worth it. I _never_ would've expected to end up in a team as great as this," the bunny-eared girl began again after a moment, suddenly with joy, "and I have you first-years to thank for that!"

Sun chuckled, "Yea well technically you're still a first-year too, and you're a super awesome fighter and I'm pretty sure you've blown up more stuff than I can count! You're all rainbows and sunshine, heh..."

Just then, their dorm room opened as their much refreshed leader walked in, slightly startling the faunus girl.

"Oh hai!" the healer welcomed with a grin, relieved to see her leader in a good mood after the visit to the Headmaster as she began to get into bed, "Did all go well?"

"Yep! Sure did," he responded casually. Sun frowned.

"Really? That's kinda weird, you would think Ozpin would kinda freak out about what we saw and scramble the jets or something on the pronto!"

Davin just shrugged it off as he threw off his armor and walked into the closet to change into his pj's.

"Yea well," he began from inside the closet, "you know Oz, he's kinda unpredictable like that." It sounded like he could be joking, but at that moment he really wasn't.

The young man walked out in a white a-shirt and purple sweat pants and got into bed after flicking off the light at his desk.

"I guess Neptune should be finishing up Ember Celica at any moment, he just switched to the detailing mallet a minute or two ago." Davin's off-handed remark was met with two raised eyebrows in the dim room.

"How do you know?" the faunus boy questioned.

"I can hear it. Steady banging of metal from the Forge's direction, sound quality indicating a high weapon calibre: Ember Celica. Mallet strikes recently changed tones, higher and lighter. He switched to a detailing mallet. Should be done soon."

"Oh, that's right. I forgot you have that freaky super-sense thing going on now."

Davin yawned before responding to the faunus boy.

"Yep."

A moment or two passed before the young man spoke up again.

"Hey, Babs?"

The sleepy bunny-girl poked her head out from under her sheets, "Yes?"

"You really _are_ all rainbows and sunshine... And I'm very glad to have you on our team, even if you're a second-year."

Upon hearing the welcome compliment, the healer smiled warmly to herself as she readjusted her position on her bed, promptly drifting off to sleep in satisfaction as Sun muttered something under his breath at the other end of the room.

"_Freaky_."

"...I heard that."

"Exactly."

"..."

Eventually, they too fell asleep before Neptune entered the dorm minutes later, joining his team in rest.

* * *

The wind howled, whistling between every crevice wide enough to let it through. Crisp and chilly, it rustled between the trees, the smell of wild grass thick in the air.

Oh, no. Not again.

Davin opened his eyes. His vision was blocked, half by several lifeless forms piled above him and half by the hair in his eyes.

'Weird, I can't imagine ever letting it grow this long.'

Bringing his hand up to move the hair out of his eyes and the pile of... things... off of him, he noticed his arm felt heavy, as if it were made of lead. He drew back in surprise when his hand brushed his face.

Instead of the warm touch of fingers, he felt the cold pressure of steel.

'Where am I? I don't remember putting my armor back on...'

As he began moving out from under the pile, he could hear a faint ringing sound in the vicinity, outside and all around him. The sound was quickly becoming more distinct.

"Is that... fighting?"

As he pushed aside the final furry object that he realized smelt like burnt meat, much like all the others, he saw the scene unfolding in front of him in horror.

War.

An entire valley of clashing forces, flashing auras and gunpowder going off in all directions, with beasts of Grimm larger than he had ever learned about and Hunters and Huntresses all around him leaping incredible distances through the air to land crushing blows to the larger enemies. A large amount of them were wielding weapons similar to Starkillers.

"Wait, where's Starkillers?"

Turning around, he found it on the ground and picked it up, putting it in the side holster of a suit of dark-grey armor which he suddenly realized was covering his entire body.

'Wait a minute. Where in dust's name _am_ I-ohmygosh.'

He cut off his own thought as he looked up at the pile in front of him.

Grimm. A pack of massive Ursas with scorch marks all over them. One or two were still emanating black smoke.

'But, if Starkillers was on the ground over _here_, how did I...'

He didn't get much of a chance to think, however, as a low growling called his attention just outside the corner of his vision. He turned to see what looked like an Ursa Major, but bigger than any he had seen before.

'No way. Is that even _real?'_

Deep down though, some form of déjà-vu was beginning to creep up on him, but it didn't quite seem there yet. Before he could react, Davin saw a figure in white suddenly flash out from a dense tree-line towards the Ursa, literally slicing it in _half_ with a blade of white energy.

The feeling of déjà-vu was getting stronger as Davin ran towards the now confused white knight who stood next to a small pond, a vague purpose involving some ruins passing through his mind.

As he approached, some inner instinct grew out from within, calling to the knight with a name he had never heard before.

"Cornelius! 'Nelius!"

'Wait. This doesn't seem right.'

He was _dreaming_. He had had this dream before. And for the first time he could remember, he knew it without having to wake up first.

However, the lucidity from the sudden realization had wiped his mind about the dream itself... he now had _no idea_ what to do next as he stood in place, looking down at his archaic armor. The response from the confused knight regained his attention.

"Hey man, Cornelius is my great-gramps!"

Great-great gramps, actually. The revelation suddenly dawned on Davin as he looked at the older version of his friend in shock.

"Wha- ...J-Jaune? Is that you?" The white knight's face suddenly indicated a similar lucid realization had just taken place.

"Vin!? You look... _older!_"

"Speak for yourself, _old-timer!_" the now not-so-young man chuckled at his friend who indeed looked much older.

"...Where are we?" the knight asked.

"War, apparently. Any idea what we're supposed to do now?"

Jaune seemed to pause in thought for a moment.

"Yea, actually... you're supposed to lead the way to some ruins..."

"Oh, right. That." Davin looked around, spotting a rocky structure about a mile or so through the battle. The ruins.

'Weird, I don't remember my vision being _that_ good,' Davin thought to himself, 'I wonder if my senses keep improving over time...' He turned to his white-armored partner.

"I see it. Try to keep up!"

"Heh. Try not to die," the knight replied jokingly, finding a hood behind his head and pulling it over.

"Yea, yea. Hmm, you got a hood? Not a bad look on ya, Jauney-boy," Davin mused as he turned and ran through the fight, Jaune right on his heels.

At least, that's what he thought. Turning around a minute or two later, Davin saw that the knight was nowhere to be found. He backtracked for about a minute before he heard him finishing what sounded like a plea.

"...You need to get help!"

Davin approached the voice, only to find the blonde leader facing a nasty-looking furry humanoid thing with a nastier-looking battle axe with fresh blood on it.

"You gotta be kidding me, Jaune."

Powering up Starkillers, he ran the beast trough the back as it lifted its weapon with an inhuman cry and pulled it back out as the mutated Hunter fell to the floor, the darkness dissipating from its eyes in front of the wide-eyed knight.

"I know, I _know!_ You can thank me later, Jaune! Let's _go_."

The two resumed their trek through the battle, fighting the various creatures they encountered en route together and finding a reprieve in the battle as they finally reached the ruins. Two younger brunette warriors approached them, but this time things felt different. The young Hunter and Huntress _frowned_ when they saw Jaune.

"What? Are we late?"

"Yes," the young Hunter replied to the knight, seemingly peeved as if some unknown altered script of events were putting him off.

"...Are we supposed to be a team or something?" Davin now asked in curiosity.

"Well, _yes_," the Huntress replied with the same confused peevishness as her partner behind a pair of rectangular glasses, "It was thanks to _your_ idea of forming a four-person team that we've come this far."

Suddenly, Jaune looked down with deeply furrowed brows.

"Uhh, Vin... I think we're about to be ambushed by Ursae and Beowolves."

The younger pair looked at the grey-armored man with heightened confusion at the sound of the unfamiliar name.

"_Vin?_"

Any further questioning was cut short as the young Hunter turned his gaze, eyes widening for only a moment.

"Incoming."

To Vin's surprise, the young Hunter pulled out a cane, slicing through a number of Ursae with an aura-projected chain while the now-hooded Huntress pelted another half dozen Ursae with jagged ice crystals from a riding crop.

Another _very_ unnerving feeling of déjà-vu began welling up within Davin at the sight of their weapons, but was replaced with a question to Jaune instead as the young man powered up Starkillers.

"Hey, didn't you say there would be Beowulves too?"

A deafening roar tore through the air above them.

"Oh. Looks like it's time for you to do your thing, Arc!" Davin now turned to face the incoming horde of Ursae as he heard Jaune shout _Why does this only happen to me!?_ in the distance behind him.

The horde of Ursae was immense and frighteningly organized, the coordinated attacks quickly becoming too much for the three warriors.

'Time for some spinning discs-of-death action!' the young man thought to himself as he reached down to split Starkillers and throw each half through the pack.

But to his dismay, the weapon didn't budge. He looked down for a moment at his weapon and to his surprise realized it wasn't Starkillers at all. It was just a single-bladed light saber.

"Whose weapon is thi-"

"AAGH!"

He jerked his head to the side as he heard the Huntress shriek, an Ursa Major having just torn her weapon from her grasp. Instinct suddenly surging from within, Davin lifted his hand at the beast, blasting it several yards away with a blazing bolt of black electricity from the tips of his fingers. He stared at his hand in shock.

"Now _this'll_ be fun!"

He turned to the pained Huntress.

"Go help Arc! We got this!"

"That Ursa _ate_ my weapon!" the hooded warrior cried out through the battle, dodging another Ursa which was promptly blasted with more electricity, "What do I do!?"

Davin thought as quickly as he could.

"There's a weird dead guy somewhere in the direction to the valley with a big battle axe! Pick it up and get to Arc! I'll cover you!"

As she ran across from him, Davin maintained a steady blast of electricity through a dozen more Ursae as the young Hunter beside him sliced through several more with his lethal aura-projecting cane. The Huntress made it out, reappearing a minute later hauling a large axe as she rounded the side of the ruins. She must've seen Jaune already.

Having sheathed the ineffective energy blade, Davin used both arms as lethal weapons of dark electricity as he scorched through half of the horde, his young partner cutting through the other half.

The younger Hunter was now not only using his aura-chain, but switched the cane's usage to a bow staff which would deliver concussive aura-blasts on contact and to a deadly spear with an aura-bladed tip which he could launch out at Ursa as a flying dagger when needed. And that Hunter was _fast_, his form literally blurring behind his glowing aura due to his speed.

Needless to say, after another minute the duo had cut through the last of the horde. Dozens of carcasses littered the field around them. Davin looked over at the panting Hunter.

"Mighty fine cane you got there, sir."

"_You're_ the one who gave me the idea, old man," the Hunter replied without missing a beat as he looked at Davin with a familiar smirk.

"Right. For the record, 'Old' is a state of mind."

"Indeed, one of your favorite phrases as I recall."

The pair began to make their way around the ruins, taking care not to meet up with any more trouble. Still, it was impossible to ignore the resurfacing feeling of déjà-vu. He had to know.

"So, who taught you to fight like that?" Vin asked as they cautiously made their way around large stony pillars on the side of the ruins. The young Hunter scoffed uncharacteristically at the question.

"_You_ did! You're my mentor, remember? And you were always my favorite," the Hunter added quietly, Davin staring back in disbelief, "But be sure not to tell Cornelius, he may not take it well!"

"How could I have trained you? Our weapons are nothing alike."

Another look of confusion from the Hunter.

"Are you alright? You're the _first_ Hunter in recorded history to have successfully mastered each and every weapon and fighting style in Remnant! You taught me everything I know!" It seemed like this guy didn't lose his cool very often.

"And to be honest, you were always one of very few who could make me lose my composure. Endless hours of rigorous training and aura-control, I _swear_ you single-handedly managed to addict me to coffee."

The grey-armored man stopped in his tracks.

"Excuse me?"

"Yes," the young Hunter continued, "you and Cornelius taught our final courses as Head Professors, you were the ones who implemented the Rule of the four-person team to naturally augment our auras with prolonged interaction to help us survive in battle against the Grimm... none of this serves to jog your memory?"

Frankly, Davin was struck dumb with the information.

"Wait. Wha-What's my name?" the young man could barely spit out.

"Davin..."

The grey-armored man sighed in relief.

"...which is short for Davian."

What!?

"V-Very well then..." the young man continued, beginning to feel dizzy, but suddenly recovered with a new and much more pertinent question in mind.

"And what's _your_ name?"

The young Hunter paused for a moment in disbelief, convinced that his mentor must have received a devastating blow to the head.

"Davin..." the Hunter began with an emotionally hurt expression.

"I'm O-"

Both men turned to a sudden muffled yelp of a Beowolf, ditching their conversation to round the final pillars and finding the white knight, wielding an aura-projected sword but otherwise unarmed, and the hooded huntress on a rocky outcrop. Davin beamed at the sight of his friend and the pack of dead Beowolves around them.

"I'm tellin ya Jaune, you look _just_ like the statue at Beacon right now!"

The team was suddenly overcome with confused glares, the young Hunters glaring at Davin's use of the unfamiliar name, and the two armored men glaring at each other realizing that it _was_ the depiction of the statue at Beacon.

Jaune was about to say something when the Huntress was suddenly thrown to the floor, a ghastly set of claws then coming through and out of Jaune's chest. Davin's fury raged from within, tainting his aura black.

"NOOO!"

He ran to the outcrop only to see the shrouded figure appear from the canopy behind the ruins, the most hideous Grimm he had ever seen or could even imagine.

Davin stopped in his tracks, however, after dodging _three_ more arms that came from the creature and noticing a very familiar orchid-colored haze beginning to glow around Jaune. That was the final straw.

"That's..." He began, his dark aura finally seeping into his eyes, "MINE!"

With his dark telekinesis, he pulled at the Trace device, catching the Grimm off-guard with the unexpected dark ability and grabbing the thin glowing line. With one final command from his instincts, he reached _into_ the Trace and pulled it open, unleashing a huge plume of dark energy which coated him and everything around him.

* * *

Davin woke up on his back, blinking his eyes repeatedly and leaving them shut just a moment longer, glad that the terrible dream was over...it had felt longer than any of the recurring dreams he had had before.

Thankfully, it seemed he was in his pj's now, he felt much lighter... but there was a ringing noise in his ears that wouldn't go away.

Annoyed at the sound, he opened his eyes to see...

'The SKY!?'

He looked up and around, the ringing sound suddenly becoming clear. He _was_ in his pj's, he _was_ his normal self.

But he was still in the dream.

And to his side, unbelievably, lay the stirring form of Jaune, back to normal as well. Davin helped him up with a raised eyebrow.

"A onesie. Seriously, dude?"

"Hey! My mom always says, sleepwear can never be too comfortable. The comfier the better!" Jaune was about to laugh at his mom's saying, but it was cut short as he realized where he was.

"What. Just. Happened."

"Looks like where we left off, apparently," the young man replied as he glanced pointedly at the scene unfolding by the rocky outcrop, the grey-armored man surrounded by dark aura and the white knight impaled and fading on the ghastly Grimm's claws. The Trace device was now a gaping black hole.

"INTO THE VOID WE GO, CURSED COMMANDER!"

The two students watched in shock as the grey warrior pulled in the Grimm leader and white knight into the trans-dimensional hole, disappearing into the device which in turn disappeared from sight.

Neither of them had seen the pair of young Hunters around the corner escape the black hole, nor the transformation the two had experienced due to the exposure to the dark energy.

"Where'd the Trace go?" Davin asked as he contemplated the bare rocky outcrop.

"No idea."

The young man sighed.

"This is the weirdest dream. Ever... of all time."

The blonde knight turned in alarm at his grey-eyed friend.

"How did you know this was a _dream!?_"

Davin raised an eyebrow, "Obvious. Cuz I'm the one _dreaming_ it... duh."

"No way!" Jaune protested, "this is _my_ dream!"

"Hah. Fat chance."

"Look... if this were your dream, would I be able to do _this?_"

The blonde knight stretched an arm out toward a small mountain range along a side of the valley, and upon clenching his fist shut, the entire range came down with an earth-shaking rumble.

The whole battle came to a standstill for one painstaking moment, the Hunters and beasts looking at the giant hole in the landscape before re-engaging in combat.

"Hmm, not bad, Jauney-boy..." the smug young man began slowly as the cries of war regained their previous volume, "But if this was _your_ dream, would I be able to do... _this_."

Whipping both arms out from his sides, Davin took a single deep breath. And like a conductor finalizing a grand symphony, the moment he made the finishing motion with his arms, the entire valley froze. The two leaders stood in the middle of a soundless dream.

"That's... actually pretty cool," Jaune admitted.

"But I can't control you..." Davin observed, "You didn't freeze. Somehow, I think we're actually sharing a dream..."

"Maybe we always were..."

And the moment Jaune finished his thought, each leader woke up in their rooms.

* * *

_**The Valean War  
**__TPS (c) 2014_


	32. Vol 1-30: First Blood, Pt 2

_**First Blood, Pt. 2  
**__-XXX-_

* * *

This time, Jaune didn't bother to check his surroundings, he had had this dream enough times. But this was different. It had to be. He went directly for his clock.

3:45 AM.

'Well, _that's_ different,' he thought to himself with some alarm.

The leader quietly rose, making sure not to wake any of his sleeping teammates as he made his way to the door. He needed to see if Davin had actually been affected by any of this.

Stepping out of the dorm, he made his way around the corner of the hallway only to find that Davin was already standing there, deep in his own cloud of thought. The moment both leaders made eye contact, an understanding passed between them.

"We should go somewhere safe to talk," the young man curtly advised.

At a small coffee table where Davin had once come across the newly-official Arkos couple, the two students had now passed several minutes discussing the events of the dreaming.

"It's not just that," the blonde continued in thought, "but remember Goodwitch talked about how the Trace erased people's memories? What if... it didn't erase them, but _absorbed_ them instead?"

"Hmm..." the young man recalled one of Glynda's lectures, "I can believe that. Goodwitch always mentioned that light energy affected the body and dark energy, the mind. Understanding both helps us manifest our Auras."

"...Like a force field."

"You really like that analogy, don't you."

The white knight chuckled. The two looked like long-time friends having a perfectly normal conversation, but each knew that under the surface this was anything but normal.

"Yep!"

"So you and me, we absorbed the memories of the only humans who have been trapped in hammerspace... Cornelius and his teammate."

"But why didn't we absorb more? The dreams only ended with the battle, and Glynda mentioned the memory loss was proportional to the amount of time spent inside the void. It's not like they could've gotten _out_, right?"

"...Well, how did either of _us_ get out?"

Jaune paused in thought. He had finally remembered what had happened at the statue some time ago, but he had never been able to make any sense of it.

"Jaune..." the young man couldn't wait anymore to ask a question that he had been meaning to ask for months, "how exactly did you find me?"

The white knight sighed, and with some difficulty managed to tell the young man everything he remembered from his first encounter with the Trace. After he finished, a few moments passed in silence.

"So you _did_ manage to affect it somehow..." the young man finally thought aloud, brows furrowed deep in thought as he propped his chin on his arms held on the table.

"Yea, if only for a second."

"But getting out, it only happened after your little conversation in hammerspace?"

"That's right..." the knight trailed off as he came to a realization, "But that voice! It was the voice of the grey armor guy in our dream!"

Davin paused for a moment.

"Then he learned to control the Trace like Ozpin predicted, after all..."

Both leaders fell into silence as they reflected on the possibilities, the earliest indications of dawn spreading across the horizon. _Davin_ had come from the Trace... what could that mean?

"_Along the Orchid's Trace_, huh?" Davin finally asked amused, quoting the strange entity's declaration.

"Yea. I guess by now, I take it that you're the Orchid."

"It would seem so."

"You know," Jaune began, eyeing his partner with some suspicion, "You and that grey-armored guy seem to have a _lot_ in common... did you ever find out his name?"

Davin shifted ever so slightly in his seat.

"Uhh... no... but Jaune, if you're thinking what I think you're thinking-"

"I am," the knight stated matter-of-factly. The young man sighed in frustration at the interruption.

"...The Trace _may_ be able to exhibit a capability for suspended animation, but I don't think it can turn back the hands of time. Look at me, dude," Davin remarked as he motioned at his youthful features.

"Well, Ozpin _did_ say that dark energy had managed to keep the Grimm leaders alive for a long time."

"_Still_ doesn't mean it can make people younger."

The knight exhaled loudly, mentally agreeing with the young man's reasoning before speaking up. He lazily dragged both hands down his face, stretching his features to comic proportions.

"Well maybe it's like that show Ruby's team likes to watch. Pyrrha told me about it once after an all-girl's marathon night: a doctor, I think, is like a lord of time traveling along the timeline of history in a blue box saving people from weird monsters... like killer mannequins!"

Grinning, Jaune pointed at Davin.

"Doctor..." He then pointed at the Trace.

"...Blue Box!"

The knight then started laughing heartily, "and the doctor _did_ have to regenerate after every season!"

His continued laughter began to die down as he noticed Davin's glare.

"No. Just no."

"_Fine,_" The white knight relented, still chuckling, "Jeez, I think this universe has enough going on without crossovers, heh."

Davin finally let out a small smirk, but Jaune was now getting more serious as he resumed his previous train of thought.

"...But none of this explains how the Trace found me in the first place."

"Well somehow, Jaune... _somehow_..." A theory finally struck the young man, "I think your will, your resolution, _called_ it to you!"

The blonde straightened up in disagreement, "Thats impossible! You mean it was floating around for _generations_ waiting for someone to activate it?"

"No... it was waiting for the _right_ person to activate it."

Jaune had to admit, there was no way to immediately shoot down the possibility.

"Well, the device only seemed to react to anyone with an abnormal aura - you, me, our ancient... _counterparts_... and the Grimm leader..."

"Exactly!" Davin exclaimed, sure that they were onto something, "_And_ you had recently had your aura unlocked, causing it to slowly grow stronger until it was detected by the device..."

"Then maybe that kind of link also gives someone like us the ability to move around within the Trace or tell it what to do, and maybe even get out!"

The exclamation rang a few bells inside Davin's clouded memory, bells which had been silent for a long time.

"Now _that_," the young man began, grinning with muted excitement, "sounds like we're getting somewhere!"

Jaune shrugged, "But the only thing left is to figure out why _you_ came out with me and why it was at the cliff..."

"Well I get the feeling both questions may be answered if I can get to the point where we reappeared. Where was it?" The young man absolutely needed to know, the excitement in his voice showed it.

"Ack..." Jaune scratched the back of his head trying to remember, "It was at a clearing by the cliff, near the launchpads..."

"Excellent!" Davin stood up at his own exclamation, "I'll go to the cliffs then!"

Jaune raised an eyebrow at his companion's sudden elation.

"Oookay then, 'Mister Oobleck', need me to go with ya?"

"Nah, Blake told me about the place a while back, should be pretty easy to find. You should get some rest, you look beat!"

Davin was right. As they each said their goodbyes, the young man heading to the forest and the knight to his dorm, Jaune couldn't help thinking that something about Davin could be the cause of his exhaustion.

* * *

After about an hour or so of searching, Davin was still lost in the dense woods, now a little peeved at his rushed decision.

"I guess this place was _not_ pretty easy to find..." the young man mumbled to himself as he trudged along in his pj's, wary of his surroundings, "This has to be my worst idea. _Ever_. Of all- oh! There it is."

Reaching a clearing, he saw the launchpads in the distance, the huge landscape of the Emerald Forest opening up around him behind the edge of a very high cliff. Under the early morning light, the entire valley glowed a dazzling green.

'Hmm. Hence the name _Emerald _Forest,' he thought to himself.

Now letting his perception get to work, he deduced that, being a spatial anomaly, the Trace device had to have a link not just through aura but also space.

'Somewhere around here, Jaune and I emerged from the Trace. And just like at the statue, it has to have happened somewhere _important_. But where?'

He looked over to the launchpads.

'Those don't really count as important.'

Gazing through the valley among the trees, he strained his eyes trying to find anything out of the ordinary. But he could find nothing but trees.

'Ugh. Gotta try harder.'

He narrowed his eyes, even squinting to try and pierce his gaze down the cliff through the forest canopy for something, _anything_. But suddenly, it wasn't so difficult.

'Eh? What's going on with me?'

Relaxing himself, he realized his vision was just as sharp without straining his eyes. His focus was smoother as he began to distinguish various objects moving along the forest floor several hundred yards away.

He chuckled to himself in the realization of his newly heightened sense.

Glancing over to the other end of the valley to the base of a small mountain range a few miles away, he could pick out a solitary Ursa Major searching for food.

'Twenty-eight bone spikes on its back. Yikes.'

Having gauged the range of his vision, he now renewed his search of the valley.

He soon found a small clearing, the forest temple where the three teams had fought off the random gathering of Grimm and where Ruby told him teams RWBY and JNPR had come together on initiation day.

'Good times, they were...'

He then kept looking on to what at first looked like a group of rocky outcroppings in the distance when his search came to a silent halt. Easily focusing on the formation a mile or two away, he could now see they weren't just rocky outcroppings.

They were ruins.

Something didn't feel right. He wanted to go to the ruins, but some deep instinct began warning him not to.

Taking a step towards the ruins, he suddenly cried out in pain from a bolt of electricity from the Trace device behind his back. The device was always there, none of the students had ever found a way to remove it.

_Zap_.

"AGH! For the love of Dust!"

Taking another step forward, another shock, only subsiding when he returned to his original position.

_Zzzzz_.

"Jeez!"

He took a step to the side...

_Zap_. "Ack!"

He took a step to the other side...

_Zap_. "Gah!"

"Ugh, what does this thing _want!?_"

Suddenly, he heard a soft whisper echo through the trees directly behind him, nearly startling the young man out of his Converse.

_The Hallowed Arc..._

"What in Monty's _name_..." The young man stared back into the trees. He saw nothing that could be a source of the whisper.

"Maybe it wasn't a whisper." He took a step backwards, away from the tree line.

_Zap_.

"Okay!"

He moved forward to the tree line and into a darker section of the forest, the Trace now ceasing to torture him any further. Then he heard it again.

_With Aura's grace..._

"I know those lines..." The young man mused at the familiar words but was distracted by the Trace acting up again.

Now, the device slowly began to get warmer as he headed in a general direction, only cooling down if he deviated from it. It was essentially a game of 'you're getting closer... warmer, warmer'.

He had to be careful because if he deviated enough from the invisible path...

_Zap_.

"Jeez!"

A few more minutes carefully making his way through the forest, he reached a forgotten grove. It was a small clearing, small enough to remain completely covered by the evergreens above.

_Shall make his mark..._

"Oh, come on!" Davin protested against the strange echo of a voice, suddenly noticing another change in the device behind him.

The Trace was now glowing, and orchid hue dancing around the objects surrounding the young man.

Making use of Blake's training, Davin decided to look around, noting a few things that indicated that the grove may not have been completely forgotten.

_Healing branches and twigs around the perimeter._

_Spots in certain places with limited grass._

_Stony pavement is still polished..._

_Someone has been here periodically for the past few months._

But something immediately stood out as strange.

"Wait. Stony pavement?" the young man thought aloud as he bent down to examine one of the stones.

He drew back in alarm as he realized that the stone had an engraved name. Checking the stones around it, he found name after name, the alarm growing inside of him as he came to the realization that this was no grove.

It was a memorial.

'This place has to be more than a hundred years old...' the young man thought to himself, hairs rising on the back of his neck as he slowly backpedaled toward the entrance, 'this, this place... Jaune woke up _here_... But _why?_'

At that moment, his foot hit a slightly raised stone. Curiosity overpowering his other senses, he looked down and gasped at the name he saw.

Cornelius Arc.

"Ohmygosh," the young man spurted as he quickly got down to a crouch in front of the marker, "It's a memorial of the Great War! Right in Beacon's backyard!" Davin ran a hand through his hair in excitement.

But his hand stopped midway as a new and disturbing thought crossed his mind.

'Jaune's not the only one who woke up here... why am _I_ here?' He began running through the lines of the Trace's riddle.

'Okay, okay...

By Aura's grace... uh...

The Hallowed Arc... Cornelius? Jaune?

Shall make his mark.

Wait.'

The young man reordered the lines in his head.

'The Hallowed Arc by Aura's grace shall make his mark-'

_Along the Orchid's Trace._

The strange voice finished Davin's thought, sounding like it came from a corner just inside the grove. The young man jerked his gaze around in fright, seeing no one around to have said it. Looking under his arm to his back, he now saw the Trace glowing brighter than ever.

"Wait a second... _By Aura's Grace_..."

The riddle beginning to come together in his head, Davin let his eyes cloud over in darkness as his tainted black Aura seeped into one hand.

Reaching behind himself, he both mentally and physically pulled at the Trace with his _Aura_.

_Shhhing_.

Davin now stood, holding the glowing orchid line of light in his hand. Looking down at the raised memorial stone at his feet, he placed the Trace over the name.

"Okay. Time to do your thing, 'Hallowed Arc'..."

The young man watched in fascination as the line of light suddenly dissipated, condensing like water into small droplets that ran around the tombstone.

Then to Davin's surprise, the droplets joined into a trickle of the whispy, glowing light that ran off the stone as if it were glass, meandering its way through the stones to another end of the grove.

"Whoa! Hold on, now!"

Getting up and running to follow it, Davin caught up as the trickle of orchid energy halted over a solitary stone at the corner of the grove, also raised.

It then began to glow, the wisps and tendrils of the light solidifying and forming a shining mark over the stone.

"A purple orchid. Hmm." Bending down, he began to speak softly to the strange device, "Riddle me this, Trace... what's so important about this little sto-"

Davin stopped as he saw the name, half covered by the surrounding overgrowth. But the first name was already enough.

_Davian_.

With a trembling hand, he reached out without a breath to pull away the overgrowth around the last name. He froze as the second name came to light.

Jumping up, he pulled the Trace back to him, the intricate form collapsing into a line of light that disappeared as the pale young man re-sheathed the device along his lower back.

"It doesn't make any sense... It, _can't_ be..." Davin shut his eyes as hard as he could and ran away as fast as his legs would allow, wishing he could be away from that place.

Opening them again, he found himself at Beacon.

Looking around in shock, he could tell by the light of day that breakfast would begin shortly, but was more surprised to feel the disheveled state of his hair and arm hairs raised with tiny forks of... dark... electricity coursing around them.

"How on Remnant did I get here!?"

The breakfast siren going off, he didn't have much time to do much else other than speed off to his dorm. No one could know about what happened. At least not until he could find an explanation.

* * *

In another part of the valley below the cliffs, a large creature emerged through the growth onto the ruins, it's bristly black holes for ears perking up at the sound of a distant boom.

It didn't have much time to check as a distinctive ringing came from beneath one of its plates of white body armor.

It pulled out the long distance communicator.

"_This had better be good._"

The sultry feminine voice responded through the telecom device.

'It is, General Darovit. Everything was done just as you asked.'

A sinister grin from the creature.

"_Any survivors?_"

'Only few. Anyone capable of fighting resisted, but only few remain. We suspect they have taken refuge in an uninhabited part of town. A large neighborhood of run-down buildings.'

"_Find them. Execute them._" The Grimm breathed out the order with a growling undertone. Another distant boom.

'And we _will_,' the female voice replied cooly, 'do we join you after we've finished?'

"_Not until I give the command. Surely the students will come to avenge the town. Dispatch them with extreme prejudice... do as I order, and I will honor my end of the agreement. You and your faction may keep your lives._"

'But what about you? If they find your location and converge-'

"_DO NOT QUESTION AN ORDER, STUPID MORTAL!_" The line fell silent in muted terror. Two more distant booms, and the sound of rustling trees in the vicinity. The General continued with malicious calm.

"_It takes time to gather an army. They converge as we speak. In the meantime, I pity the petty insect who finds me in these ruins..._" The beast focused on a new sound near the ruins with its enhanced hearing. Voices.

"I heard something earlier, it came from over here!"

"What took you guys so long?"

"Two years in this place and we still can't get used to those metal launchers of death!"

"Hey, that gives me an idea for the new chapter of that fic of yours, Vik! 'The Shining Knight Reacts to Launchpads'!"

"Shut up."

The Grimm returned its attention to the line with a murderous grin, "_Speaking of which..._"

'Let me _guess_,' the woman began slowly, easily regaining her composure as always, 'First Blood?'

The grin grew larger, revealing the beast's black fangs momentarily before its white faceplate extended over its mouth, sealing off its face under a dense bony mask etched with red runes with the only holes being for its glowing red eyes.

The line went dead.

* * *

Five students glanced at the silent and hunched over young man with worry at the breakfast table. Jaune couldn't help eyeing Davin's side, which along with his armor now sported his old weapon holster with Starkillers tucked inside.

At that moment, Davin couldn't bring himself to even touch the Trace again.

"Vin, are you okay?" the white knight finally asked as Davin put another forkful of food in his mouth without response.

"Seriously man," Sun began, "You look like you've seen a ghost or something!"

An steely glare from the grey-eyed leader.

"Never mind. Forget I asked."

"Vin, please tell us what's wrong?" Velvet gingerly pleaded, placing a hand on the leader's shoulder. He sighed in exhaustion.

"I'm fine."

"And there goes the biggest lie in the school year..." Ren commented as he chewed down another slice of pancake.

"Heh... there _have_ been worse," Jaune chuckled nervously.

"Vin, you can tell us what's bothering you. We're here to help."

As tough as it was to say _no_ to a concerned Pyrrha, Davin wasn't about to budge.

"Seriously, I'm _fine_."

The Spartan sighed with worry.

"Anyway," Jaune now changed the subject, much to Davin's relief, "Where is everybody?"

"Yang went with Neptune to the Forge to pick up her weapons," Sun explained.

"Aaand everyone _else?_"

"Well... the rest of her team chose to tag along in case Yang wasn't happy with the results."

"I don't think Yang would need the protection if things got out of hand."

"It's for Neptune's protection."

"Nora went along for added protection as well," Ren added casually, "though I'm sure she went along more to see if any crowns were crafted in the Forge."

"Uhh," Pyrrha began, but stopped herself as she realized where such an idea would've come from. Ren _did_ seem awfully relaxed that morning.

'Dating Nora must be very... tiring,' she admitted to herself.

Just then, the scrolls of each student began buzzing violently, each screen pulsing red as they opened them. Urgent message from Ozpin.

'Complications with team CFVY reconnaissance mission. Aid required from teams RWBY, JNPR, and VNDS _immediately_.'

Jaune's gaze immediately darted over to Davin, who didn't even bother to finish another bite before pushing his seat back with a grim expression and quickly making his way to the door. The alarms buzzed one more time.

'Maximum firepower recommended.'

* * *

"Jeez Vin, answer your scroll!" Jaune mumbled to himself as he and most of teams JNPR and VNDS ran through Emerald Forest.

"Where's everyone else?" Sun called out as he swung through the canopy overhead. With parkour training, the monkey-faunus could easily move through the dense forest from above.

"They're on their way. Can you sense anything yet, Velvet?" The Spartan glanced over at the concentrating faunus-girl.

"Nothing, no signs of team CFVY," the healer stated as she rushed through the woods, trying to locate any nearby sparks of Aura, "And you already know I can't track Vin... _wait!_" The group stopped alongside a natural trail in the woods.

"I'm picking up a single Aura not too far from here..."

"I thought you said you couldn't-"

"One of team CFVY. I can't tell who, it's very faint."

"Let's go." The white knight directed the group in the direction Velvet pointed.

After several dozen yards, the students began to worry about the state of the second-year team as they began to spot signs of struggle. Worry turned into the beginnings of fear as they saw how bad it was... entire trees uprooted or broken in half, huge markings left on the forest grounds.

Their fears coming true, they crossed a small barrier of shrubbery to find an artificial clearing in the forest, made hastily as an effort to make a final stand. In the clearing lay three motionless bodies, a fourth crouched by one of them, checking for a pulse.

"Vin!" Sun yelled as he jumped down from a nearby branch, "What happened?"

"I don't know, I just got here," the young man somberly replied, "But something big came through here. Couldn't have been long ago, these bodies are still warm."

"Yatsuhashi..." the bunny-faunus said to herself as she crouched down to the same body Davin was checking.

"You knew him?" he asked sadly, feeling for his grieving teammate.

"Yes... h-he was one of few friends. He used t-to look out for me..." Large tear droplets were starting to form in each of her eyes.

"I'm sorry, Velv," Jaune began consolingly, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"It doesn't make any sense..." the stoic observed, "None of them seem to have received any life-threatening injuries. What killed them?"

"Just as I thought," the Spartan announced sullenly, holding up her scroll after having scanned each fallen student consecutively, "their Auras have been sucked dry."

The students fell into a dejected silence, more than one of them gazing furtively at the pensive young man.

"You said there were signs of a live Aura around here?" Ren recalled.

The healer, taking a moment to refocus, suddenly jumped up facing a side of the clearing.

"Yes! It's still there! Right over t-there!" She ran over to a collapsed sapling, moving over its young foliage to reveal a fourth victim. Of the four, the injured fox-faunus under the foliage was the only one with any visible puncture wounds.

"He's bleeding out!" the Spartan cried out in alarm.

"And so is his aura! I won't be able to do much to help him if we can't get his aura level up!"

"Let me take care of that." The knight walked over to the fallen faunus, his hands beginning to glow as he held them over the fox's punctured abdomen.

The faunus began to glow bright red as the white knight recharged his aura, and with a final large pulse of his white aura into the Faunus, the Faunus-boy gasped, large brown eyes fluttering open.

"Okay, I'll take it from here..." The healer knelt down next to the student, hands glowing pale green along his abdomen as his still-glowing aura seeped into the wound, finally closing it shut. His breathing finally stabilized.

"Let's get him out from under this," Ren stated as he and Sun moved the tree off of the student, permitting him to slowly sit up against the fallen trunk.

"What's your name?" The redhead asked as softly as she could, "do not worry, take your time..." The recovering faunus adjusted himself slightly.

"Viktor..." He began weakly, "Ylvis..."

"Viktor Ylvis? Alright, that's very good," the Spartan continued, "Viktor, can you tell us what happened to you and your team?"

He grunted, his aura, having been vastly overcharged by Jaune, still working on his wound from the inside.

"Erg... it was big... _really_ big... and fast. We couldn't get away from it. Sucked the life right out of my team."

"You're the leader?" Sun asked. The fox-faunus nodded.

"How did he manage to survive?" the Spartan asked herself, hand to chin in thought.

"Uh, guys. I think I know how." The students turned to Jaune.

Having inadvertently copied Vick's semblance, Jaune stood back and flexed his arm in fractions of a second. But to the students' surprise, the arm that flexed at light-speed wasn't his physical arm, but a murky white projection of his forearm, swiftly followed by his actual arm.

Figuring out the semblance, Jaune then focused on the other side of the clearing, the students gasping as a pale white apparition of Jaune suddenly flashed to the other side of the clearing, connected to his body only by thin wisps of aura as his body met and re-melded with its Aura counterpart at superhuman speed.

"That's even faster than Blake can summon and move with her shadow-clones..." Sun commented in awe.

"Guys," Jaune began as he walked back to the group, "Viktor can completely displace his aura from his body at light-speed, his body following in its wake as fast as physics will allow. It explains why the attacker couldn't get to him so easily."

"That's right, man..." the injured fox-faunus replied, chuckling weakly as he began to lose coherency, "Ahh, almost done in by the one in the forest... but the Shining Knight in the flesh, saves my life... Too bad that bugger of a Grimm had to get me for us to meet..." The Faunus sighed in frustration as he lost consciousness once more.

"_Grimm!?_" the students all cried out at once.

Davin, however, having stood back at the other end of the clearing, was now staring intently towards something in the distance through the forest.

His instincts were giving him the same feeling of warning as earlier that morning, but nothing was about to stop him from ending this right now. Without a word, he sped off into the forest.

"Vin?"

"VIN!"

The sounds of the students' shouts faded away as the young man raced towards the ruins.

* * *

_**The Valean War  
**__TPS (c) 2014_


	33. Vol 1-31: The General

_**The General  
**__-XXXI-_

* * *

The white-haired Headmaster looked out of the rear of his secondary office at the arboretum as was his custom, cane in one hand and coffee mug in the other. His pensive expression belied the fierce factions of thought warring in his mind.

Contrary to Ironwood's implications earlier that year, Ozpin wasn't a man who was haunted by war, no... he missed it.

His platinum blonde colleague entered the office door behind him, tablet in hand.

"It is almost similar to the way things began the _first_ time around," the Huntress began somewhat enigmatically, "Do you still lose sleep over it?"

"A long time has gone by since that era..." the Professor replied airily, taking a sip of coffee.

If it was one thing age and experience had taught Ozpin, it was to find peace regardless of one's past. He had done the same, putting that part of his life behind him as he looked to use the lessons learned in building a better future for Remnant. After all, if he couldn't learn from history... he was bound to repeat it.

Glynda sighed, "Then what of Team CFVY? We lost contact with them more than an hour ago."

The Headmaster's brows furrowed ever so slightly. He was a man who prided himself with being well-informed, either always being in the loop or at least being a step ahead of everyone else. It was the gift that age and experience had bestowed upon him, and he used it wisely.

But right now, he had no idea.

"I'm not sure, sensing any activity in the Emerald Forest has proved... difficult."

"Difficult?" the Huntress echoed in surprise.

"It has become rather clouded. Something is interfering with my perception."

"The young man?" she asked in curiosity.

Glynda trusted the Professor, she had known him for ages and knew that if something went truly wrong, he would never back away from a fight. And these days, with the emergence of not just one but _both_ of the Unbalanced, she noted his hand becoming awfully twitchy over his cane.

"I'm not sure," he finally replied. Not knowing was difficult. Lives were at risk.

"Very well..." She began to turn around to walk out of the office.

"Glynda?" he said softly, looking over his shoulder at the Huntress. She stopped in her tracks as she turned to the calm voice of the Headmaster.

"Please inform Oobleck and Port that their service may soon be required... as Hunters."

With a single nod, she took leave of the office.

The warning pangs from the Professor's instincts were becoming stronger.

* * *

Davin maintained a steady breath as he raced through the forest, his aura-enhanced strides accelerating him through the foliage.

Finally reaching his destination, the young man skidded to a halt along an outer courtyard of the battered ruins. This time, he made sure to deploy his armor, each section of metal successively spreading over his body. Looking around, he had to blink a few times to make sure he was awake.

It was just like he remembered it. Entryway, chamber walls, columns, outcroppings.

Davin made his way over to the outcroppings, stopping in front of a certain familiar rock formation. He closed his eyes as he imagined the White Knight and Huntress victoriously standing over the dying Beowolf, a dark cloud now appearing and obscuring the mental image.

The young man powered the light-blade at his side, opening his darkening eyes at the empty stone.

"You're going to pay for what you've done."

Behind the young man, a low growl echoed around the rocky clearing in response.

The growl gaining intensity as it became a booming roar, Davin instinctively dashed to the side as a black hulk came from behind him in attack, the unknown assailant obliterating the rocky outcropping in front of him.

When it turned around, Davin felt a pang of dread for the first time as he faced a Grimm like no other. Though its form was grotesque, it seemed oddly... _human_.

It stood almost as high as a single story building, at least three feet taller than the already tall young man. Covered in thick white bony plates which almost resembled armor above tufts of black fur on muscular limbs, it had menacing spikes protruding from its knees, shoulders and from its elbows to its forearms.

Two more horns protruded from its head, a large skull of black fur covered by a single red-runed bony faceplate. Its eerie red eyes glowed from beneath as it gazed at the young man and sensed the surprisingly dark energy surging from him.

With incredible speed, the Grimm charged Davin again, swiping the air above him with elongated bony-white claws as the young man ducked and dodged its attacks, spinning off to the side with Starkillers now held in front of him. But surprisingly, the beast only stood in place again gazing at the young man.

And then to Davin's shock... it _chuckled_.

'That can't be right, this thing is sizing me up!' Davin thought hastily. Its stance, its intentional pausing, that chuckle, it all pointed to one thing...

Intelligence.

As if it sensed Davin's thoughts, a fiery black aura emanated from the beast, its claws retracting as the dark energy converged onto its hand to become a slender, curved katana with a lustrous black blade.

"Oh."

Another bellowing roar shook the ruins as the beast charged Davin again, but not in any way wildly. It calculated its blade strikes with lethal speed and precision, taking the young man by surprise as he had difficulty countering the slashes with Starkillers.

After a minute or so, however, the beast seemed to be getting frustrated that the kid was managing to _survive_. Davin now noticed as well, his instincts driving him to change tactics to gain the upper hand as he now spoke up.

"Okay, big guy..."

Powering on the other side of his light-blade, Davin charged the Grimm with the dual-bladed saber like a bo-staff with his bojutsu training coming to the fore. Taken aback at the sudden flare of combat skill, the beast roared as the young man managed to slice off several sections of its arm-plating with several spinning blade strikes.

Pulsing its aura at the young man, Davin was sent flying back several dozen feet to the end of the ruins, giving the beast enough time to regrow its damaged armor.

"Ow."

"_Insolent FOOL..._"

Davin jumped up in surprise at the beast's first words, now sizing up what kind of creature he was fighting and what it was capable of. Grimm weren't even supposed to _have_ an aura, much less _talk_.

The aura-pulse, however, had left Davin feeling supercharged, much the opposite effect that such a pulse of dark energy had on Jaune.

"_So_... it speaks!" Davin began, having picked up a tendency for wisecracks during a match from his monkey-faunus teammate, "I guess it's been a while since your last tussle, old-timer! How's about I bring you up to speed?"

Splitting Starkillers, he was suddenly slack-jawed as he saw the beast mimic his motion, reaching for the hilt of its blade which after momentarily dissipating re-condensed into two katanas, one in each hand.

"I stand somewhat corrected. You mind if keep those as souvenirs when I'm done with ya?"

"_Do not be so certain, boy!_" it responded fiercely with emphasis on the last word.

Rushing the Grimm, Davin clashed against it, blades striking each other in rapid succession. Having longer reach, the beast resorted to wide swinging arcs with each katana around itself leaving little space to dodge each strike... Yet to its chagrin, the young man was managing to evade its attacks by ducking under or jumping over the long blades with spinning slashes from his own.

The General had had enough.

The beast whirred his blades at the young man and feinted with a katana, but instead of completing the slash, brought its spiky forearm back with a blast of aura against the young man with a resounding crack as Davin flew back again, this time with an injured shoulder.

"_You are going to die now, boy._"

Barely managing to get on his knees, Davin watched as the beast threw out a surge of fiery black aura around itself, withering every plant and tree around the entire ruins. Even in the gale-force storm of energy surging around him, the young man was able to make out Jaune's voice in the vicinity... his friends would never make it in time.

'Goodbye, Jaune.'

Davin braced himself for his end as the killer blast of dark energy engulfed him.

* * *

"Did you feel that!?" Jaune shouted in alarm as he felt yet another invisible pulse hit him from the side.

"No, what is it? Are you alright?" Pyrrha asked, worried that she couldn't sense the cause of Jaune's alarm.

The tiring feeling in his limbs felt all too familiar...

"I think it's Davin!"

"What do you mean?" Ren asked perplexed, "Not even Velvet could track him..."

The three members of team JNPR had left team VNDS to look after Viktor while they searched for Davin. A sudden realization hit the white knight.

"But maybe_ I_ can..."

Shutting his eyes and concentrating as hard as he could, Jaune reached out from within, trying to detect the young man's presence as if he were calling out to him. His thoughts followed suit.

'Vin!'

'Viiin!'

'DAVIN!'

The white knight was almost ready to give up when-

_Goodbye, Jaune_.

His eyes shooting open, the knight pointed at a distant location within the forest.

"THAT WAY!"

* * *

The General maintained his blast of aura on the young man in heinous enjoyment, hate spewing from the beast's pores. The very trees around the young man, once thick and robust with life, now began to wither and crumble under their own weight, the entire landscape growing grey in death.

That nuisance of an opponent would be obliterated for his insolence, _destroyed, PULVERIZED-_

_"WHAT?"_

The beast roared in a heated fury as the whirlwind of dark energy died down, revealing the young man to be still intact.

Davin's form was surrounded by his own dark aura, supercharged by the General's attack and having seeped into his gaping shoulder wound, sealing it shut.

"Surprised?" the young man began weakly as he stood up, the darkness remaining in his eyes, "So was I."

"_IMPOSSIBLE!_" the furious Grimm growled.

"Oh I'll give you _impossible..._"

Charging his arm full of dark energy, the young man released a booming bolt of black electricity at the General's face, sending him flying back into a wall of the ruins.

Thinking he had won, Davin faltered as he now saw the beast stand up, eyes glowing in both anger and realization. With animalistic savagery, the General rapidly pummeled the young man with wall after wall of fiery black aura from across the stony courtyard, the force of each impact throwing him in different directions in mid-air.

Before he could even hit the ground, the Grimm dashed to catch Davin by the neck, the sounds of sinews cracking as the long-clawed hand tightened its grip.

"_YOU are the Dark one of the Unbalanced!_"

The young man could only sputter incoherently in response, trying to gasp for air.

"_Finally, an enemy worth killing! But before I do, I have special plans for you first..._"

Retracting the bottom half of its face plate as it pulled the young man's face inches from its own, the beast's bony black jaw was visible as it bared its gruesome rows of black fangs. Opening its mouth to a horrific size, it exhaled slowly as a wisp of its dark aura traveled from its throat through Davin's gasping mouth.

The young man's eyes widened before he entered into convulsions, finally clouding over in a red glow before closing as his entire form went limp in the General's grasp.

"Let him go! NOW!"

The beast turned its head towards the unexpected voice that came from behind it. Dropping the unconscious young man to the floor, it now faced an angry young knight, two terrified students readying their weapons behind him.

"That is a _really_ ugly Grimm..." The stoic stated before gulping out loud.

The General roared loudly, its wide-open jaw lined with long black fangs only adding to its terrorizing effect. But instead of charging the students, its claws clouded over with fiery aura as it pulled down a wall of the dark projection onto the students.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha was barely able to shout the name before the knight countered the attack with a blast of his own white aura.

Sending another rapid barrage of pulse after pulse of the darkness coming from every angle, Jaune countered every one of the Grimm's attacks with swinging fists that sent out projected blasts of his white projections, each impact resounding throughout the ruins with a deep electric buzz.

The beast finally relented as it noticed the knight not showing any signs of fatigue, growling in anger as two long katanas condensed in each hand from its dark aura.

"Is that the sound of what I think it is?" Pyrrha suddenly stated in disbelief as she turned towards a mechanical humming coming from above the tree line behind them. A voice suddenly rang out over a loud intercom.

'_Oho! Neat tricks there, big guy!_' Neptune stated as a large armed airship appeared over the students, '_But didn't anyone ever teach you not to bring knives to an airship fight!?_'

Turning to its side, ADA's several turrets maintained an automatic lock on the Grimm as the blue-haired student commandeered with a very happy Nora at turret controls, also revealing a large opening with all of Team RWBY aiming their long-range weapons at the same target. Seul, who had spent the night in the roomy ship instead of JNPR's dorm, jumped down safely with his open parasol to join team JNPR on the ruin grounds.

The large Grimm had expended much aura on the young man and white knight, and was now forced to consider its options. Though its aura quantity was massive, it was still artificially infused... and thus, limited.

With a final roar, the General pointed its katana at the group of students, summoning a giant horde of Beowolves and Ursae along with two Deathstalkers suddenly charging through the trees toward the teams.

"You gotta be kidding me..." Blake muttered to herself as every turret, pistol, gauntlet and cartridge began firing upon the horde. The General made his way back into the trees as the ensuing chaos unfolded.

Jaune, Pyrrha, Ren and Seul charged the horde, a singular objective running through the white knight's mind.

"Protect Vin!"

The four students made their way through the pack towards the fallen young man, Jaune taking the lead as he slashed and deflected the oncoming creatures of Grimm. Every stab and maneuver with Crocea Mors was incredibly augmented by his aura, sending several beasts through the air to be dispatched by team RWBY or ADA.

"Hah! Nailed it!" The blonde brawler called out from the ship as she pelted a Beowolf in midair from the airship with a projectile casing from Ember Celica, sending the Grimm flying back into the forest.

"Hmpf. Barely a headshot," the heiress calmly replied as she sent an ice round to the grounds, freezing half a dozen Ursae which were promptly blasted through by the Spartan.

Finally reaching the young man, Jaune and Ren began clearing a small perimeter around him as Seul and Pyrrha made their way over. However, two loud roars from the Deathstalkers put a pause in the latter pair's advance.

Without a word, Seul launched himself over to the incoming scorpion.

"I'll take the other!" yelled the redhead, eager to even the score against the arachnid race of Grimm after her initial tussle with one during initiation.

The silent boy was hurtling through the air to the scorpion, opening his umbrella in front of him to slow his advance in midair as a giant claw swung inches below the weapon. Closing the umbrella again, Seul landed quickly on its back before slashing at its exoskeleton a few times ans jumping to the floor.

The Spartan engaged the other scorpion on the other side of the clearing with gusto, quickly putting two of its large eyes out of commission as she timed her shots from Milo with a sniper's accuracy.

"Hah!"

Ducking and dodging with Akoúo around its pincer strikes, she tumbled away just in time as its stinger came down with deadly force.

The other Deathstalker was making equal use of its stinger, much to Seul's chagrin. Even so, the boy was moving and fighting with such ease, taking out several Beowolves and Ursae consecutively with every attack against the beast, that even the students on the airship were impressed.

With a carefully timed leap over a pincer slash, Seul landed on the tip of the beast's tail and with three aura-aided slashes from Hansel sent the stinger falling harmlessly to the ground. He then closed Gretel over his head with incredible force, sending him dozens more feet into the air.

"Seriously..." Ruby deadpanned as the lone boy soared straight up in the air, "Where does Jaune even _meet_ these people?"

At the height of his arc, Seul gracefully turned with his aura flowing into his weapons and a small smirk on his face, suddenly slashing Hansel and Gretel downwards which sent a huge blade of compressed air to the grounds, slicing the Deathstalker and several Grimm around it in half.

"I find it very surprising that you still got bullied with _that_ kid around..." Ren briefly stated to the white knight as he dispatched several Grimm around them with Stormflowers.

"Yea, well. He couldn't be around all the time," Jaune mused as he readied the young man to get picked up by the airship, suddenly looking up as he heard a pained yell from the courtyard.

Though she was fighting a practically blinded Deathstalker, it had managed to graze her leg with its stinger. Jaune's aura flared as he promptly finished with the young man, the white flickers accidentally grazing Ren and now pulsing green.

"Cover me, Ren!"

"What?"

The knight rushed right by the stoic towards the injured Spartan.

"Oh for dust's sake," Ren continued handling the dwindling horde.

Though she could still dodge its attacks, Pyrrha wasn't quite as light on her feet anymore. Jaune came up beside her after laying waste to a few Ursae.

"Need a hand?" The knight threw out an aura projection of a hand, swatting away a pincer strike.

The Spartan smirked, "I guess _I'm_ the damsel in distress this time." The knight smiled back.

"Oh it'll take lots more than a scratch to get you in distress. Incoming!"

Pyrrha ducked as a pincer came at the pair with incredible speed, but Jaune, having accidentally copied Ren's semblance, caught the pincer in mid-air with his pulsing aura before tearing the whole thing off and throwing it away.

'I didn't know I copied _Ren's_ Semblance... sweet!'

"My Shining Knight," the Spartan began with a grin.

"Dont even start..." The blonde leader replied, blushing at the reference.

Both students dodged another pincer strike, Pyrrha over the attack with a grunt of pain and Jaune under with his shield up... but this time the knight drew his sword upward on the attack, slicing the pincer clean off.

Getting an idea from the maneuver, the Spartan called out before she reached the ground.

"Jaune, hit me!"

A split-second raised eyebrow shifted to an expression of understanding as the knight launched the Spartan he knew so well directly at the Deathstalker with a precise blast of aura.

Swinging her shield under her back, Pyrrha skidded across the stony courtyard at a very high speed under the beast as she held up Milo's spear edge, gutting the Grimm right down the middle from head to tail. As she shot out the other side, the beast paused as it took its final breath, immense body cracking like an eggshell down the middle and collapsing to the floor. Jaune met her on the other side.

"Pyrrha, I _so_ love you right now."

The Spartan laughed at her loveable knight as they swiftly made their way back around to the fray, meeting Seul and Ren around Davin.

"No point in fighting these things anymore!" Ren called out over the sounds of roaring beasts and the approaching airship, "I already called in the ship!"

"What about Sun, Velv and Vik!" The knight responded in alarm.

"They already picked them up and returned them to Beacon before coming back! All we need to focus on now is getting _out of here!_"

"Run and live!" Jaune called out in response with a grin, "Now _that's_ a plan I can get behind!"

But as the airship began its descent near the group of students, it was suddenly hit with a barrage of potent dust grenades.

"Nora!" Neptune called out to his copilot in alarm, "We're under fire! Try and get a handle on where it's coming from!"

"Got it, Cap'n!~" the orange haired girl spun mechanically in her gyroscopic turret control seat behind Neptune, peering into her HUD for signs of enemy fire.

"I think I see-OOF!" The cockpit rattled violently as the airship was hit with another volley of grenades, Nora's worry suddenly increasing as the ship settled close enough to the floor several yards from the grounded group, "The firing triggers got jammed!"

"Ren! Get Pyrrha to the medical bay!" Jaune shouted over the chaos, "Seul and I will hoist up Vin onto the ramp and find whoever is shooting at us!"

Successfully getting Pyrrha onto the ship with a mad dash, Ren looked back in dismay as the knight and boy were cut off by three Ursa Majors.

"VIN!" Yang cried out, noticing the young man laid out on the ground behind the students, "Keep her steady, Neptune!"

Jumping down to the ground, irises already red in anger, she quickly laid waste to a small pack of Beowolves in her way with bone-crushing blows, somersaulting over the last of them to dig in a gauntlet-powered punch onto a skull of an Ursa Major. However, in its crazed panic, it swatted her hard out of the air.

"AGH!"

Landing next to the two boys, she stood up and quickly realized that though she dazed it, the antic had only served to anger the other two even more as they now readied themselves to attack.

"Uh-oh."

"Yea," the knight agreed as the first Ursa recovered.

"Guys," Seul called their attention with warning in his voice as he looked behind him.

Emerging from the treeline was a large shielded grenade launcher with a nasty curved blade along its side, held with large muscular arms by a single White Fang operative who was reloading the deadly weapon. Blake recognized him immediately, promptly holding a hand to her radio earpiece.

'_Guys, that's the White Fang spokesman!_' she began hastily, '_He's__ one of their leaders!_'

'_Uh yea,_' the blue-haired student quickly cut in as he remembered about the device in his ear, '_Don't__let him fire again, ADA can't take any more hits like that!_' The white knight looked over to the boy.

"Seul, you take him... _alive!_" He knew what Seul was capable of doing, "Me and Yang will take out these Ursae!"

As the silent boy rushed towards the large Faunus, the two blondes went to work, each taking an Ursa on the side as they charged. Jaune drew his sword as he launched himself up with an aura-powered jump, slicing off the head of the first Ursa. But as he came down, he didn't expect the second of them to bear down on him so quickly, losing his sword to a well-placed paw-strike.

With the beast roaring above him, it was cut off mid roar as the third Ursa flew crashing into it, impaling it with its large back spikes as they careened to the floor with the force of Yang's punch. The knight took the hilt of his sword from Yang, who offered it to him as he got up.

"Thanks, Ya-LOOK OUT BEHIND YOU!"

The blonde brawler turned to see the third Ursa had recovered and was hurdling towards Davin with impressive speed. Her anger blazed at the Grimm as she prepared to intervene.

"Oho, I got something _special_ for this one!" she declared to the knight before jumping in Vin's direction.

Landing between Davin and the oncoming Ursa Major, she kissed her gauntlet before pulling it all the way back, letting the entire force of her semblance along with a whole round from Ember Celica empty out with one punch that literally _blew up_ the Ursa the moment it made contact.

Every living thing at the ruins - human, faunus, and Grimm alike - took a moment to gawk at the insane dispatching of the beast.

Of course, as the final creatures of Grimm fell to the weapons of the Beacon students, a drizzling rain beginning to fall throughout the forest, the youths now couldn't help but watch in awe as the two remaining opponents at the ruins fought with a fierceness that only two killers were capable of.

Seul attacked the large Faunus mercilessly, anger rising as the operative nimbly deflected both weapons under the rain. Though the grenade launcher was incredibly large, the Faunus could position it as a shield against the boy's air attacks, easily flipping it to the offensive by slashing with its blade or launching a grenade close range with only one arm.

Seul's speed however did give him the advantage of placement, frequently pushing the Faunus back with his chokuto against the launcher. But the Faunus easily made up for it in strength, his opposite bare arm strong enough to deflect Gretel with powerfully swift blocks.

"Go get 'im, Seul!" Ruby cried out in excitement, "Show the bad guy who's boss!"

With a growl, the White Fang leader spoke up with a loud gruff voice.

"The name's... CRUDUS!"

Lashing out with explosive power, Crudus swung his launcher in spinning circles out across the boy's area of defense, almost tearing Gretel before flinging it out of Seul's grasp.

"I think I'm gonna have to interfere soon..." Jaune mentioned with worry.

Contrary to the thoughts of the other students, the knight was actually worried about the Faunus... they needed a _live_ captive for questioning. He could already tell the change in Seul's fighting stance through the intensifying precipitation.

Deceptively low, the boy now stayed in a crouching stance as he evaded the operative's slashes, and finding an opportunity at a slash that swung a fraction of a foot wide, the boy went to work. Slashing up with his chokuto, the resulting air-blade drew blood from the Faunus.

"Gah! You stupid kid!"

Slash after slash began breaking through the Faunus' defenses in Seul's silent rage, and the students began to worry as they saw the blood running even through the heavy rainfall. The white knight noticed the gashes were becoming deeper, and called out to the boy.

"Seul! STOP!"

With a cracked yell, the boy then dropped the chokuto as he hit the weakened Faunus with an aircanon-like uppercut, launching the Faunus a few feet in the air before spin kicking the brute bicycle-kick-style. Crudus flew so far that he hit the hull of ADA, actually displacing the ship a few feet in midair before he dropped to the floor of the on-ramp within an inch of his life.

Picking up his weapons, the fallen Crocea Mors and the launcher, Seul tossed them onboard as he helped Yang and Jaune haul the drenched young man into the cabin. The three teams kept a safe distance from the questionably stable boy.

"Seul!" the white knight began, white aura flaring around him as the airship began to take off, "What were you _thinking!_"

The boy didn't even flinch.

"He doesn't deserve to _live_. He was at Dorme! I remember that voice..." he replied, his voice dripping with rage.

"He lives because he needs to be questioned!"

Knowing it was better to pick his battles, Jaune took a deep breath, reeling in his aura. He turned his attention to the Faunus who laid on the edge of the outer doorway, still exposed to the elements as the airship approached its optimal height over the ruins.

"Crudus!" the knight began, "That's your name, isn't it?"

The Faunus nodded weakly, the rain drenching his face and washing blood off his bare tattooed shoulders.

"Why did you attack us?"

"Why didn't the Grimm attack _you?_" Ren interjected.

"And _who_ are you working for?" the last question made the most sense. Blake. She needed to know, this string of her past causing too much turmoil in her new life.

"Ge-Gener..."

"SPIT IT OUT!" the furious brawler yelled unexpectedly, the reality of Davin's state having fully hit her. She needed to know as well if they were to figure out anything about his current state.

"General... Darovit!"

_SHHHUNK_.

To Jaune's horror, a large black blade suddenly erupted from the bottom of the ship up through Crudus' chest, cutting the questioning short indefinitely. The blade dissipated as the Faunus leader gave his final breath, the knight looking down from the open doorway to see the Grimm leader let out one more booming roar as the airship flew away in the heavy rain.

* * *

Fortunately, the ship hadn't gone too far from Beacon.

Upon exiting the ship, the students were met with grim-faced Professors as the growing procession was directed through the hallways toward the infirmary, students stopping and watching the teams carrying the motionless young man with stunned sorrow.

"Out! Out of the way, sirs and misses!" Professor Port called out as he ushered onlookers to the sides of the hallways.

Finally arriving at the infirmary, the three teams were permitted into the room as two medics hooked up the young man in a bed with an inclined headrest. Velvet, Neptune and Sun stood on one side as a distraught Yang, Blake and Jaune stood along the other, a _very_ worried Ozpin and Glynda watching Davin's blank expression from the end of the bed.

Due to the space and the other injured leader, the remaining students had gone along with Oobleck and Port to visit Vik, who rested next door.

A confused medic scratched her head as she tried to explain the situation.

"We've gotten him set up as best we can for him to recover... but," she paused, trying to come up with a professional explanation but falling short, "We just can't understand it. His vitals are normal, or at least _should_ be normal, but for some reason they're fading."

"Is he... _dying?_" Yang asked in desperation, her voice cracking. She had gotten down next to the bed, taking his hand in both of hers.

"We can't be sure. His functions aren't slowing down, they're simply... _fading_, and we've checked the equipment several times for malfunctions-"

"And we thank you for your diligence," Ozpin softly but decisively interrupted, "We should continue monitoring his situation _constantly_ for any... changes... to his condition."

"But he'll be fine, right Professor?" The brawler looked at Ozpin, her lilac eyes begging for any indication of hope. His countenance offered little.

"We can only hope for the best, Miss Xiao Long..."

Fighting back a sob, Yang buried her head in the young man's chest, the tragic scene breaking the hearts of each occupant in the room.

"We will need Mister Rosfield to get some rest if he's to have a chance at recovery..." the medic stated as she finally brought herself to speaking out loud.

"Very well..." the Headmaster reluctantly consented, "Children?"

Ozpin and Glynda led the students out of the room, leaving the medic in the room and Yang at the bed with Blake at the threshold waiting for her partner.

* * *

As team JNPR left the room, they were about to enter Vick's room when a electric whistling noise rang out in Jaune's ears.

'_Hello!... Hello! Can... anyone 'ear me!_' The white knight looked between his teammates and the other students. Only he seemed to be picking up the distorted voice.

'_Hello! My name...s...Cyrus Fergusson! Can anyone copy?_'

"Cipher! It's Jaune!" the worried knight called out into the earpiece, turning its volume up so that the rest could hear, "What's wrong?" The students were now paying very close attention.

The voice didn't seem to pick up Jaune's response as it continued.

'_Hello! Hello! ...if anyone can hear this, Dorme has fallen! I repeat... Dorme has fallen!_'

The color drained from Jaune's face, a similar reaction taking place on team JNPR's faces as well.

"No..." the desolated Spartan whispered as she and her teammates looked at their leader.

'_We been... at Flynn's Arcade... not many left! ...I'm trying every frequency... every signal the bloody control center can still broadcast! If anyone can copy, we need reinforcements, dozens of them Paladins out there! We'll soon have no choice but to make a final stand! Oh, Monty!_' thee hacker concluded with a defeated sigh of desperation, '..._May that bugger help us all!_'

The line went dead. Jaune knew there wasn't much time.

* * *

"Miss..." the medic began, but barely had the heart to continue.

Yang picked her head up off Davin's chest, tear-striken eyes locked on his stony face.

"You can't do this Vin..." she began with a broken whisper, "you _can't_... not to _me_... please!"

Blake watched her teammate and friend completely breaking down, and didn't even realize when large tears had suddenly formed in each of her own amber eyes. The readings began to fade to dangerously weak levels.

"Please, Vin, _please_ wake up!... don't leave me like this..."

"Miss, we're going to need to treat him now! His vitals are fading too low!" the medic worriedly stated as Blake heard footsteps coming down the hall.

She didn't care to turn and see as specialist doctors from Vale brushed by her and flooded into the room.

Yang leant in close in one last attempt to bring him back, wishing her own lifeforce could conjure his own to its original state if it were possible as she whispered into his ear.

"I _love_ you, Vin..." she said so softly that not even the cat-faunus could hear as the female medic came to pull the brawler away.

"...I love you."

* * *

_**The Valean War  
**__TPS (c) 2014_


	34. Vol 1-32: Retribution, Pt 1

_**Retribution, Pt. 1  
**__-XXXII-_

* * *

The lone airship hurdled through the late hours of the night, still a few hours away from its destination.

Twelve students silently waited inside the cabin for the promised medical results of the injured by phone, each pair sitting in their usual places. Except this time, Ruby sat with her distraught sister while Seul sat with Velvet in another row.

In the isle between the rows, Jaune had placed his scroll on top of a bench which had been pulled so that the group could easily gather around it when the news came. It was the only condition by which the remainder of Team VNDS would leave Davin's side to join the fight.

Finally, the scroll began to buzz. Reaching out, Jaune put it on speaker mode as he answered.

"Hello?"

'_Hello? Yes, this is chief medical officer DuFresne._'

"Do-what?"

'_DuFresne. Like rain, or train. Hank Du-frain._'

"Yea... I think I'll just call you Doc. Do you have any news?"

The students came together around the small bench from their respective rows.

'_Yes, we're happy to inform that thanks to Miss Scarlatina's rapid response, Mister Ylvis is looking to make a full recovery!_'

The healer smiled weakly, but the rest of the room remained silent on the most part.

"...and what about Vin?"

The students glanced sullenly at the dejected brawler who had spoken up for the first time since leaving the young man at the infirmary.

'_Mister Rosfield?... Oh, yes. That one was a little tricky, as our equipment was soon completely unable to work on him after trying to diagnose his condition. BUT, we successfully managed to stabilize him, and he's currently completely healthy!_'

The students were finally able to breathe a little easier.

"Has he woken up yet?" Jaune asked in curiosity.

'_No, not yet. But if his vitals remain this strong, it surely won't take much longer! If anything, the physical readings we were able to get, like pulse and tissue samples, show that he's stronger than ever!_'

"Thanks, Doc!" Ruby cheerily responded, "Please let us know when he's up and walking!"

'_Not a problem! We will keep you posted!_'

As the line hung up, the white knight smiled at team JNPR while Sun reassuringly hugged the rest of team VNDS, Neptune in one arm and Velvet in the other. Yang returned to her seat by the window without another word.

"Yang? You okay?" Ruby spoke up softly as she sat next to her sister.

The brawler merely stared out of the window into the dark night. She sighed before finally answering.

"It's funny, I guess I got used to taking these flights with him right here with me," she confessed as she continued looking out the window, "I just want him to be okay, y'know?... I want him to be back with us..."

"I know, Yang... me too. You heard the doctor, Vin's getting better!"

Yang remained silent. Ruby rested her head on the puffy shoulder sleeve of the blonde's jacket.

"He'll be fine, Vin's one of the strongest fighters we know! And I _know_ he's got something really good to fight for... I'm sitting right next to her!"

Yang turned to her sister and smiled for the fist time in several hours as she pulled her in for a hug with one arm. She knew Davin could recover and was sure that he would want her to be where she was now.

And right now, she needed to be there for her friends and the people. Yang Xiao Long needed to be a Huntress.

"Thanks, Rubes," she began softly as she turned to look at her sister with a warm smile, "Dad would be so proud of you, ya know that? You've come a long way since your first day at Beacon!"

Her grin widening, she playfully tightened her hug on her sister, essentially putting Ruby in a headlock.

"Gack!" Ruby cried out as she tried to wrestle herself free from her big sister's grasp, "You're welcome!..."

Finally breaking free, both sisters laughed and relaxed, each knowing that they'd need their rest for whatever was to come.

But as she rested her head against the window, looking into the pitch black night, Yang felt a nagging memory that was trying to fight its way into her consciousness, a piece of the Headmaster's conversation that she had been present for during the night when Davin's semblance had gone off in Ozpin's office.

As the nagging died down, the memory unable to become clear, the brawler dismissed it as she decided to let sleep overtake her.

* * *

On another part of the ship, Neptune, Velvet and Sun sat across Weiss, Seul and Blake as they regarded the impressive bladed grenade launcher.

"That's a really big aperture," Neptune began with a tinge of awe in his voice, "Definitely custom, though I'd say the ammunition that it can handle is pretty universal."

"It's the kind of thing a White Fang leader can afford..." Blake mused in response, an emotionless expression on her face.

Velvet however couldn't be any more the opposite. Barely controlling her excitement, she reached out and grabbed the weapon.

"Sooo... now that he's _dead_..." the bunny-faunus began with contained mirth, "Does that mean it's up for grabs?"

The students looked at each other with some confusion. Neptune shrugged.

"Sure."

She grinned from ear to ear as she hugged the lethal weapon to herself before both bunny ears shot up with a question.

"But what should we call it!"

Sun held up a hand to his chin in thought.

"Hmm... why not call it... a Grif Shot!" he proclaimed with a snap of his fingers.

"Don't you mean _Brute Shot?_" Neptune tried to correct.

"Nope, Grif Shot! It's _perfect!_"

Blake glared at Sun as she caught on to the reference.

"Seriously, Sun. At a time like this."

"Oh you and those weird looks again! And of course, the name's _awesome_."

The cat faunus sighed as she facepalmed. "_Second_ worse sense of humor. Ever..."

Weiss deadpanned at Blake as the raven-haired girl finished.

"...Of all time!"

Seul looked at Blake somewhat quizzically... her favorite phrase was a reference to the same source as the Grif Shot... but he decided to remain quiet as he usually did.

And Blake couldn't exactly be blamed. She had gotten it from Davin.

"I like it!" Velvet called out. The students turned to face her as she slung the huge weapon on her back with impressive ease.

"Grif Shot it is!"

Interestingly enough, the students noticed how recent events had begun to affect Velvet, her confidence growing as well as her fighting skill. Even her voice had begun losing its persistent stutter.

"Isn't that a little... _big_... for you, Velvet?" Weiss asked somewhat incredulously.

"Oh of course, Weiss-senpai!..." the elated bunny-faunus began, receiving a somewhat quizzical look from the group.

For Velvet, her night was taking a very pleasant turn for the better... First, she had acquired an incredibly lethal weapon with a blade that she could finally use in close combat like her teammates, and second, she was now actually getting attention from her personal idol, Weiss Schnee!

"...But I can handle it!" she continued gleefully, "Watch!"

Jumping up, she took up the Grif Shot and started twirling it around and above herself with dangerous speed, impressing the students by how she managed to do it with just one arm. Transferring it to her other hand seamlessly, she swung it up and around her back as she resheathed her weapon.

"Velv," Neptune joked with a respectable measure of seriousness in his voice, "remind me to never spar against you... like _ever_."

The students laughed lightly, each however still taking a mental note agreeing with the blacksmith and to take the bunny-faunus seriously from now on.

"Not bad..." Weiss finally commented on the grinning healer's strength, "You'd surely be able to give Davin a difficult match if he ever recovers!"

The students glared at the heiress, who shrunk back just a bit at the combined staring.

"Too soon?"

"Too soon, Weiss," Blake calmly replied.

"Al-_right_... but I really do hope he recovers..." the snow-haired girl unexpectedly admitted meekly.

"We all do," Neptune stated, reaching across and placing his hand on her shoulder, "But in the meantime, we should get some rest."

Weiss let out a small smile at the blue-haired student as the group returned to their respective seats.

As Sun and Blake passed a few rows, nudging each other playfully as they had grown to do often in Sun's attempts to divert the catgirl's glares, neither noticed the third team was still awake trying to identify every loose end in their current situation before getting some rest.

"So do you think Davin's okay?" Ren asked the pensive knight.

Jaune and Pyrrha had gotten on their knees on top of their seats, poking their heads over the back of their row so they could chat with Ren and Nora. Jaune exhaled sharply.

"For the last time, I'm not sure..."

"But you've been saying yes or no for the past few minutes, Jaune," Pyrrha glanced sideways to her leader, her chin propped on her crossed arms on the back of her seat, "Did you notice anything different than the medics did?"

The team eyed him with intense curiosity; they had also been trying to find out how the white knight had pinpointed the young man in the forest earlier that day. Frankly, not even Jaune had the slightest idea.

But as to Vin's current condition, there was more to be said.

"Well I believe Doc," he began slowly, "Davin can take a hit and we all know that, but something else is going on..."

"Like what?" the redhead inquired.

"When I was in the room next to him, he didn't exactly look calm. I could feel something different in him, like if he were _fighting_ something!"

"Well that sounds like something we won't be able to clear up until he wakes," the stoic curtly concluded, sitting back in his seat in need of rest.

Jaune and Pyrrha looked at each other for a moment, reluctantly agreeing with their green-coated teammate, and were about to settle into their own seats when Nora spoke up.

"Hey, does anyone know what happened to the big scary Faunus guy?"

Her team momentarily traded looks of uncertainty.

"Maybe the coroner picked him up?" the white knight theorized, "I'm sure people saw the dead guy."

"We don't _have_ a coroner."

"Well we have medics..." Jaune continued, "I'm sure someone picked him up or something to rest him in a cemetery."

"He's right," Ren finally responded with a bit of an edge in his voice, "No way that Crudus fellow gets out on his own. Dead people don't walk. But speaking for us as the living, we need to get some _rest_ in these seats."

Heeding his advice, Nora got comfortable on her grumpy neighbor, falling asleep almost instantly as her usual soft snores began. Jaune and Pyrrha got down in their seats.

The Spartan, however, couldn't help noticing that her partner still had more on his mind. She decided to do her best to lighten up the situation.

"Jaune," she began as she took off her circlet, flooding the knight's senses with the relaxing scent of jasmine as her hair came down, "Are you alright?"

"You did that on purpose..." he quietly mumbled in hazy satisfaction, correctly guessing the purpose of her alluring action. Pyrrha grinned sheepishly as she slowly responded.

"Mayyy-be..."

"Al-_right_," the knight relented, "I'm just thinking about home..."

"I'm sure there's an explanation for what happened to Cipher. Dorme is practically a kingdom in itself, and it'd literally take an _army_ to defeat it."

"Well-"

"..._And_ in one day? Quite doubtful."

Jaune sighed.

"I guess you're right... I just hope Cipher isn't as right as he sounds he is."

The Spartan watched her partner squirm, wrestling with the possibility of Cipher being as right as he sounded, and decided to change the subject.

"So, I suppose your family must be safe at least... you're all Arcs, after all!" she said with a light chuckle.

"Yea," the knight let out a small smile, Pyrrha's statement bringing him out of his growing gloom, "And we're rarely all at home at once, but I'm sure they can handle themselves either way!"

The knight's confidence in his family further warmed Pyrrha's mood, her grin growing wider.

"I'm sure if they were _all_ there, we wouldn't be needed!"

Jaune warmly laughed at the light-hearted joke. Whether it was due to their linked auras or not, the two students doubtlessly shared a deep connection both in perception and in humor.

And that connection would only serve to make them stronger in battle, something Jaune realized as he responded to his gorgeous partner.

"Hah! I guess you're right, Pyr!"

Taking a more serious tone, she continued, "You know, Jaune, you've never told me much about them... what are your parents like?"

"Well..." the son of Arc began, settling into his seat as he was thinking of where to begin, "My dad's name is John. He's a big guy, a _very_ good Hunter in his day, and protected Vale and the rest of Remnant from some of the biggest Grimm insurgences in his generation."

"I've heard of some of those," the Spartan replied, "his battles were one of the reasons for my wanting to become a Huntress! And how did he meet your mother?"

"Mmm, he was doing a stint in Dorme taking out a large infestation of Grimm," Jaune continued, "when he met her, Jane Smith. She was a Huntress from a rival team. They duked it out for a while, each trying to outdo the other, and it even got to the point that one group put out a hit on my dad, and the other on my mom, to eliminate the competition! My parents were literally supposed to kill each other!"

Pyrrha's eyes widened at the surprising little-known facts about the family.

"What happened then?"

"They got married instead."

She deadpanned at the grinning knight.

"Seriously! After that, they teamed up and took on the other hitmen hired by each group to eliminate them while taking on an entire invasion of Grimm at the _same time!_" a smiling Pyrrha moved closer and closer to Jaune as he continued speaking, finally cuddling onto his side which caused him to blush slightly.

"And then?" Grinning, she wrapped both her arms around his arm like a pillow, his blush getting deeper.

"A-And after neutralizing practically every one of their enemies, both clans finally left them alone. They settled in Dorme and had us!"

"That's a good story," the redhead commented as she looked up to him from his shoulder, "what are they like together?"

The knight smiled at his girlfriend, remembering how much she enjoyed physical contact, "They're a great team, for starters. You see, my dad's like an aura powerhouse, but my mom... my mom was creative. She had a way of planning things out that made her the _best_ at what she did. She says that my dad's face was priceless when he found out she had more Grimm kills than him! But after a while, both stats were forgotten compared to their kill stats as a team." A moment passed in silence.

"...Would you say you and I are as good a team?" the redhead asked with a inquiring grin. The knight smiled back.

"Comparing you and me to my parents? Well you know what they say... records are made to be broken!" His reply made the Spartan giggle warmly.

"You make a good point, Jaune Arc!" She rested her head on his shoulder to let him continue.

"And you know, it was funny... at first some people argued whether or not they were an Arc couple, or a Smith couple. Some of our family friends still call them 'Mr. and Mrs. Smith', heh!" The white knight paused for a moment before continuing his narrative.

"But as a _mom_, my mom was the best... she taught me about how to be a hero - courage, kindness and duty - and she would always believe in me even if I didn't believe in myself..."

"Oh?" the Spartan replied, "what about your father?"

"My dad..." Jaune began with some hesitation, "my dad taught me how to fight... or at least tried to. I was the second youngest, only nine months older than May, my sister. And I was pretty scrawny... I never really caught on to using Crocea Mors very well before Beacon. He uh... he always went hard on me to make sure I could be tough enough for it..."

"Well..." Pyrrha responded with a yawn, fatigue finally taking its toll on her, "You'll sure show _him _when you get back..."

"I guess so..."

"And your sisters? You mentioned them at the dance..." she mentioned slowly in what she felt would be her final effort in keeping her leader's thoughts on positive subjects before falling asleep.

Jaune yawned, "Let's see, there's _Joan_, she's the eldest and best fighter of us all... and the only Huntress other than my parents. Then there's _Rowenna_, she's a writer but I'm not sure of what... then _Yssa_, the explorer of the family who managed to map out all the forests around Dorme on her own. And then... _Anne_, she's a designer who works in Vacuo, and _Gabriel_, our technologically savvy sister. Then it's _Catherine_, our financial expert; then _me_, Jaune Arc, yours truly; then _May_, our resident fighter-to-be and expert cook! Now you have my family history in a nutshell! What about yo-"

He cut himself off as he looked over to see that Pyrrha had fallen asleep on top of him.

"Maybe next time then... gnite, Pyr."

He softly kissed her on the head before relaxing on the cushion of his seat. With a small smile on his face, he drifted off to sleep, confident that the teams could handle what was to come after reaching Dorme in a few hours.

* * *

_Boom._

_Boom... Boom._

The cat-faunus stirred at the foreign sounds, her head leaning against the window.

_Boom.. Boom.. Boom._

_Boom, Boom._

Her cat-ears perked up. The sounds were multiplying, and they seemed to be getting closer. She looked out the window and saw nothing but sky above and fog below them.

_Boom! Boom! Boom!..._

Noticing the fog suddenly shifting around, the raven-haired girl squinted at what now looked like fireflowers blooming in mid-air around the ship.

"Are those explo-?"

_BOOM!_

The last one shook the airship, a sudden blaring of an alarm jerking every passenger awake, followed by an ever-enthusiastic electronic female voice.

'_Good morning! It is 6:47 AM, and my Logical Data Analysis sector indicates we have begun taking enemy fire. To avoid loss of auto-piloting functions, immediate evasive action is recommended!_'

"Alright, alright!" Neptune shouted annoyed as he walked towards the cockpit, rubbing the sleep from his eyes as he took the keys from Jaune's outstretched hand before entering.

A minute or so later, he stepped out again to the group of waiting students, wide awake.

"Okay, people! I got good news and bad news, which one you want first?"

Ruby began to raise her hand.

"Good news _first_, then! Good news is that we won't crash and die even though we're under anti-aircraft enemy fire!"

"Uh, what's the bad news?" the somewhat groggy brawler asked.

"Bad news is that we can't _land_ while under anti-aircraft enemy fire!"

Ruby raised an eyebrow, "Uh-"

"That's right, Ruby! Which means we're gonna have to _jump!_"

The students stared incredulously at the flustered pilot. He continued.

"_So_, any ideas how we can do it?" Neptune winced as he offered the next bit of info, losing his cool just a bit, "cuz we're like, _five thousand feet in the air!_"

The students instinctively looked at Jaune. Jaune looked at Pyrrha. Pyrrha looked at the exit.

"Wait!" the blonde leader exclaimed, armed with an idea, "Everybody grab your weapons!"

He walked over to the surprised Pyrrha to elaborate.

"Your semblance! If we jump and aim for anything with a metal roof, we should be able to slow our fall, right?"

The Spartan's brows furrowed in thought as the loud explosions continued around the ship.

"Theoretically, _yes_," she replied, "But I'm not certain I could generate enough force to slow us all down on my own, Jaune..."

"Meh. That's where _I_ come in..." He lifted an aura-projected hand to the side of Pyrrha's face. She instinctively cradled her cheek into the projection, its warmth against her skin causing her to smile as her eyes fluttered closed momentarily.

"You did that on purpose..." she muttered to her grinning leader.

He chuckled softly, "Mayyy-be!"

The students returning with their gear, Jaune stood next to Pyrrha, the semblance replication process complete.

"Okay, guys," he stated to the group, "In one way or another, we're all wearing metal, so that means that Pyrrha - and now myself - can at least control our jump. If we aim for anything made of metal, we can slow down enough to figure out our landings on our own."

"Now _that_ sounds like a crazy idea from a totally insane video game... or a scene from a movie based on a comic book," Sun replied.

"...but it'll work," Blake replied calmly with conviction, "If we link hands, Jaune and Pyrrha should be able to control us as a single unit as we fall. It's our best chance."

"But we will only have a few seconds to link up after we jump," Pyrrha began, "After that, Jaune and I can take it from there."

Another jarring explosion prompted the return of the female voice.

'_I am glad to inform that we have arrived at Dorme! Also, shield levels are at critical!_'

As the side doors opened, Jaune craned his neck to look down at the thinning fog below.

"Time to go!"

Without another sound, every student jumped out of the aperture just as a string of explosions reverberated around the ship.

_BOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOM!_

For a moment, all sound ceased, a whooshing sound from the wind in their ears now muting the distant explosions from above. Pyrrha looked over at her falling comrades.

"Link up!"

All sound returning to its blaring intensity, the students managed to link up one by one until they had formed a circle with Jaune and Pyrrha at either end. Engaging their semblances, each student held the magnetized hand of the others, now locking each other in place as the circle of horizontal students approached the ground.

"Where's Seul!" Someone suddenly called out in alarm.

Jaune looked around to see his friend falling dead-weight several yards from the group, a piece of an exploding shell having knocked him out in mid-air.

"He's knocked out! I don't know if we'll reach him in time!"

The ground was approaching quickly... Jaune had little time to think. Whipping out his arm towards the falling boy, his aura glowed around his hand as he pulled in Seul by the metal in his weapon. Linking his hand in Seul's as Ren took the other just in time, Jaune looked over at Pyrrha as they dropped under a thousand feet in altitude over a derelict two story shack with a tin roof.

"_Now!_"

Straightening their legs underneath them, Jaune and Pyrrha engaged their semblances downwards through their lower limbs, completely crushing the small building to the ground with magnetic force before the group slowed to a stop about twenty feet from the floor.

"Good enough!"

Dropping down, Jaune caught Seul and placed him on the ground as Velvet healed the boy's minor head wound from the shrapnel.

"Well... that was _different_." the heiress idly commented as she brushed herself off.

Lifting a brow at her unamused partner, Ruby then turned to check on the downed boy.

"How do we wake him up?" the crimsonette asked With some alarm.

"Try taking his weapon," Ren shrewdly suggested.

Reaching for Gretel, Sun began unhooking it when the boy seemingly shot out his hand unconsciously to stop his weapon's retreat, the other hand shooting out in a fist straight to the faunus-boy's nose.

"ACK! _Jeez_, Seul!"

The boy's eyes shot open, Seul quickly realizing what he had done as the monkey-faunus angrily rubbed at his own nose.

"Sorry! Reflexes, man..."

Standing up, the boy rejoined the group, who had formed a small perimeter around the pancaked building. Jaune looked around at the hazy fog surrounding the area. It was quiet.

Too quiet.

_Crash! Boom! Errrrk!_

With sudden loud mechanical sounds surrounding the group, the students watched as six Paladins emerged from the fog around them. Ruby took the fore.

"Bumblebee, Ice Flower! We take out the two to the north! Arkos, Noren! The two to the east! VNDS, take the big one on the south! Seul, do you think you can handle..."

Her voice trailed off as the students gaped at the sixth Paladin which now stood buzzing with electricity and motionless, its entire top half suddenly sliding off with a clean slice from a single semblance-powered airblade strike from the boy who stood in front of it.

"...Right."

The other machines angrily charged the group with screeching machine parts, at which Sun shouted out in relish.

"_Let's get some!_"

* * *

_**The Valean War  
**__TPS (c) 2014_


	35. Vol 1-33: Retribution, Pt 2

_**Retribution, Pt. 2  
**__-XXXIII-_

* * *

Having faced a Paladin before, Team RWBY quickly got the upper hand on the first two giant war robots.

With their tried and true method, Weiss cast an ice glyph in front of Crescent Rose as Ruby shot the robot's limbs to a grinding halt with giant ice crystals, each girl then advancing on the robot with incredible speed. Jumping up and deflecting a few blasts from the monger's large arm cannons with her scythe blade, the crimsonette distracted the machine for a few seconds longer through the air before the heiress dispatched it with a violet-lit rapier stab, blowing it to smithereens.

"Not as skilled as Roman's mech, that one," the snowy-haired girl stated with a small smile to her out-of-breath partner, sending out another ice glyph through the suddenly fog-free air to freeze the escaping faunus pilot solid.

Ruby raised a tired brow as she replied, "How about *_pant pant_* _you_ distract the next one!"

Yang and Blake were all over the next one in their area, the blonde pelting it with gauntlet-fired projectiles while the cat-faunus hooked the blade of Gambol Shroud on its front, using her momentum to swing around and land on its neck piece as she fired into its control panel but not before it landed a solid punch on the brawler.

As she saw her partner flying away, the raven-haired girl angrily stabbed the neck panel as she dodged a reaching mechanical arm.

"You _colossally_..."

_STAB_.

"Stupid!..."

_STAB_.

"...FIEND!"

With a final stab at the panel, Blake seemed to hit something important as the machine's arm lost control, spinning in all directions and helpless against the returning Yang's incoming semblance-punch through the air.

With a thundering blast, the robot was blown to pieces as the angry brawler connected a fist to its cockpit, sending the entrapped pilot hundreds of yards away as the fog suddenly cleared out around the teammates.

"You think he can survive that?" the recovering blonde asked her silently impressed partner.

"It may be possible."

Team JNPR was having a bit of a tougher time in their own area several yards away, it being the first time either pair had faced the large robots. They also seemed to be a bit larger than the ones the girls had taken out.

Jaune and Pyrrha were dodging one bot's slashing arm blades while evading fire from the other arm's mounted machine guns. Finally getting tired of trying to find its weakness, the knight opted for a more direct approach as the haze suddenly retreated from the battle, giving the couple a clear target.

'Huh. That fog cleared out pretty quick. Oh well...' the knight thought briefly before he called out at his partner, "Pyrrha, take out its guns!"

His aura flashing around both arms, Jaune sheathed Crocea Mors as he stood in front of the machine and held out both arms, magnetically slowing the robot's arms to a halt in mid-air as the Spartan disabled its guns with a well-timed throw with Akoúo.

"Aim for its neck panel!" Blake called to the redhead from above her own downed Paladin.

Flipping up and over the war bot into the air, Pyrrha turned upside down in mid-air to give herself the momentum to sling Miló down with deadly speed into the robot's neck joint. Losing all mobility, the machine stood helplessly as Jaune walked right up to it and unleashed a huge pulse of aura, sending the disabled Paladin flying into a distant building.

The pair regrouped to see the fourth Paladin land a shoulder-mounted rocket shot to Ren's feet, blasting him away in a cloud of dust. Nora was not too happy about that.

Marching towards the machine as she transformed Magnihild into hammer form, her grimace was undeterred as the machine focused all its tracking lasers oh the orange-haired girl.

"Grr... HIYAH!"

With an impossibly fast swing of Magnihild, she took out its entire leg without flinching as it fired its main cannons, missing her by inches as she readied her next swing.

"YAH!"

Another powerful crash sent the other leg flying away, leaving the top half of the robot desperately trying to re-target the angry student.

"Have a nice ride!~" Nora cried out in her usual cheer as she twirled the massive hammer above herself and nailed the cockpit with a final powerful strike, sending it rolling out into the now-distant fog clouds at an astounding rate.

Ren, having gotten up to stand next to her, counted a few seconds more before hearing a crash in the distance and the sound of a falling forest tree.

"You..." the stoic told his grinning partner as he finally caught his breath, "are the most amazing person in my life."

"Where's Seul and the others?" Jaune asked as the students regrouped.

"I can hear them, but I can't see where they are..." Blake replied, straining her ears to catch the faint sounds of clashing metal as the students looked around the now sizable fog-less clearing.

* * *

In the distance, the four fighters had previously been taking on a larger Paladin with four arms and a deadly shoulder-mounted rail gun, its tracking lasers flashing all around the fog as it fired at them.

Having lost patience with the difficulty of facing a hazy opponent as his peers dodged its hefty blows, Seul opened Gretel, compressing as much air as he could around him with calculated twirls using Hansel.

Now closing the umbrella beside him with incredible force, the boy unleashed a massive surge of air outwards which spread out around the ground and cleared the fog out for what could easily be a square mile in the blast's direction, unknowingly helping the rest of the dozen students fight their Paladins as well in the distance.

Well, _most_ of them, at least.

"Ack!" Neptune cried out as he barely dodged a powerful shot from an arm cannon due to the gust of wind, "Almost killed me right there, man!"

"Sorry! Not used to working with a team."

"Well _get_ used to it! We gotta take it out together, I think this Paladin's automated!"

The blue-haired student paused to switch his weapon into blaster mode, hitting the robot with multiple energy shots while Velvet pelted it with Grif Shot grenades from its other side.

"Its hull is too thick!" the faunus girl called out, jumping out of the way to avoid being flattened by a robotic fist.

"How about you do another one of those robot-killing sword slices of yours!" the monkey-faunus loudly suggested.

"One time deal. The next ones are never as strong as the first."

"Just _peachy,_" Sun muttered before thinking out their next move as he leaped over another Paladin punch, "Neptune! We gotta take out its arms!"

As Velvet and Seul distracted it with alternating close range attacks, the other two came up from behind, Sun jumping at one arm as Neptune bounded over him at the second arm on the same side of the monster bot. With two of Sun's aura-projections appearing mid-leap to strike the arms from the other side of the machine in mid-air, all four hits landed at the same time which momentarily disabled the Paladin's four arms.

Neptune grinned at Sun... his own energy strike had completely sliced off the arm-cannon from its mechanical appendage.

"Meh, lucky strike!" the faunus-boy retorted playfully.

In front of the beast, Velvet now lifted the Grif Shot in both arms, blade facing the giant robot, before looking over at the boy.

"A little help here?"

Seul nodded in understanding, "Got it."

With a quick dash behind the upheld weapon, Seul timed an air blast to Velvet's launching of the weapon, augmenting its flight speed immensely into the front hull of the massive machine as its arms regained function.

"And _I'll_ take it from here, Seul!"

Dodging and sliding under its swinging four-arm attack, the bunny faunus ran at the Paladin, jumping at the last moment to grab on to her weapon with a yell and firing several grenades into the gaping hole it had created while the machine reeled back in its final moments.

"Wow," the wide-eyed boy said aloud as the machine landed on its back motionless, the bunny-fauness firing one more grenade into its massive frame for good measure.

"There they are!" Ruby cried out from a distance as she finally noticed the downed robot, the students now staring in wonder at the small faunus who stood on it.

The victorious girl pulled out her weapon and resheathed it on her back as she stood over the iron monger, grinning at the other two boys who gaped at her impressive act of combat before turning to give Seul a thumbs-up.

As they watched the adorable girl who had one bunny ear up and the other drooping down as usual turn to the boy, the impressed expressions on Sun's and Neptune's faces quickly turned to those of alarm as they saw the giant rail-gun flex over and above the robot's head, aiming right at Velvet's back with its spine lighting up as it powered its shot.

"VELV LOOK OUT!"

Turning to look at the rail-gun in surprise with no time to dodge it, Velvet yelped as the rail-gun suddenly exploded before it could fire.

_BLAM!_

Neptune looked at Seul in shock, who stood with a large arm cannon held in both arms on the other side of the downed robot.

"You shot it with its own _cannon!?_"

"It's kinda poetic... when you think about it," Sun thoughtfully mused next to its partner before Seul responded.

"It might not be dead yet!" the boy called out in alarm before running over with the cannon to the AI unit in its large headpiece.

Joining him, Sun and Neptune walked over to its head and readied their weapons while Velvet walked above to the neck of the machine with the Grif Shot pointed downwards on the head, each student now firing their respective weapons into the unit as they stood around the fallen robot: arm cannon, energy baton, nunchuck pistols and grenade launcher.

_BLAM!_

_POW!_

_BAM! BAM!_

_BOOM!_

A brief pause.

_POW! BLAM!_

_BAM BAM, BOOM!_

_BLAM! POW!_

_BOOM!_

"You think we got it?" The bunny girl asked meekly, the students panting lightly with all the gunpowder and debris rising from the charred machine.

Sun cocked his head to the side, "Meh."

_BAM BAM BOOM BLAM POW!_

_BOOM POW BAM BAM BLAM POW BLAM!_

_..._

_BOOM!_

With the Grif Shot having the final word, Sun was now satisfied as a dark plume of smoke began to rise from the large cavity that was once the Paladin's AI unit.

"Yep. We got it."

As the three guys turned to make their way towards the approaching group of students, Velvet hopped off the heap of metal with a smile to follow them, humming the theme song for a certain machinima series as she went along.

"That looked like fun," Jaune commented casually as the two groups met halfway in the run-down part of Dorme, "Thanks for clearing out the fog, Seul."

Weiss raised an eyebrow, "That was _you?_"

The boy nodded, eliciting an impressed expression from the heiress which she couldn't hide. The students seemed surprised that she acknowledged the boy at all.

"But _still_... Ruby and I were able to dispatch our Paladin without the need for complete visibility," she commented with a self-satisfied smirk.

"And _there's_ the Weiss everyone knows..." Ren replied with a smirk of his own.

"Hmpf." She crossed her arms as a few of the students couldn't help chuckling at the comment.

Sun now looked around the clearing as they stood in the largely flattened neighborhood near the edge of the fog clearing. It had begun to close in a bit once more, rolling through the town again but leaving the students with plenty of visibility for the moment.

"Do you guys think that was it? I don't really hear anything anymore-"

Before the catgirl could respond, however, a voice outside the group answered for her.

"I keep telling him... _not_ the brightest banana in the bunch, that one."

Four figures appeared through a patch of fog that had closed in near the group. The students watched as a fire glyph suddenly burned through the fog around them, revealing none other than Roman Torchwick and Cinder with her team.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me..." Blake let out in disbelief.

"Oh _don't_ be so concerned to see us, kids!" the criminal continued with an exaggerated bow, "We're just here on _business!_"

"How about I show you the _business end_ of _my_ _staff!_" Sun growled as he began to advance, but was promptly stopped by the cat-faunus.

"No. I will put this one down myself."

Roman chuckled, "Then I guess today we get to mix business with a little pleasure!"

The four villains armed themselves as the Beacon students now recognized his three companions.

"Neptune..." Ruby whispered sideways to her blue-haired peer, "They're not from Haven, are they."

"Nope."

"Judging by the looks on their faces, I'd say most of them recognize us by now..." Cinder stated smugly to her two companions.

"I wonder if they missed us~" Emerald cooed at the group.

"Yea. Full Metal Huntress never called me back," Mercury began with a hint of mock dissapointment in his voice, "How about we give our little dance another go, sweetcheeks?"

Jaune angrily stepped forward to the grey-haired merc, white aura blazing hotly.

"Oho, _I_ got somethin' for you to dance with... _sweetcheeks_."

No sooner had he finished when Mercury was suddenly punched in the face through a nearby pile of bricks by a large white aura-gauntlet. The other three villains pointed their weapons at the knight to fire, but each were halted by the students as they engaged their new opponents.

Blake and Sun engaged the criminal in a flurry of pistol fire and cane deflections while Emerald was countered by Weiss and Neptune. Cinder, however, was forced back by Ruby alone, a sudden realization taking hold of the girl as she saw the enchantress' glowing amber eyes.

"_You're_ the one who corrupted the CCT!"

"Guilty as charged," the fire maiden stated cooly as her hands lit up in flame, "You're looking at the Queen herself!"

Throwing several fireballs at the crimsonette, Cinder dodged scythe-strikes from Crescent Rose as Ruby flipped around her attacks in mid-air.

Timing their strikes in unison, Cinder blew her opponent back with a fire-blast as Roman knocked Blake away with a powerful counter from his weapon, blasting Sun away with a shot from the cane's end at the same time in tandem with two dual pistol-shots from Emerald that downed both the heiress and Neptune.

Roman adjusted his bowler hat with a grin.

"And I almost forgot to mention, there's _plenty_ of fight to go around!"

The students turned at the sudden sound of a booming mechanical horn to see another half-dozen Paladins racing at them from behind.

"Jaune, Sun!" the red leader called out quickly, "Take your teams to fight the robots! We'll take care of these guys!"

With the pause having given Mercury time to rejoin his group, Yang put her hand on the scowling Spartan's shoulder.

"I'll handle it."

Re-engaging their opponents, Ruby took on Cinder, Weiss engaged Emerald, Blake dashed at Roman and Yang swung at Mercury as the other eight students fell back to meet the Paladin squad in the distance.

Meanwhile, Jaune, Pyrrha and Ren took on three Paladins while Sun, Neptune and Seul took on the other three, Nora and Velvet hanging back to add an element of grenades into the fights before closing in as finishers with their weapons' alternate uses.

As Jaune and Pyrrha each evaded canon blasts from their respective Paladins with cover-fire from Nora, the knight hooked on to Pyrrha's robot with his semblance, his partner doing the same to his bot with her polarity as well before they each pulled the robots into each other with a loud crash. Both were finished quickly by a powerful hit from Nora's Magnihild that practically bonded their metal frames together.

His girlfriend flipping backwards to rejoin him, Ren shielded Nora from a powerful metallic punch as she swung her hammer down, breaking the third Paladin's arm clean off. With two more twirling swings, she quickly dispatched the bot as it flew away in pieces.

Turning back, team JNPR found the other four students merely watching them with the three other Paladins behind them in pieces.

"Took you guys long enough," Sun teased with a smirk, "Let's help Ruby's team!"

In team RWBY's duels, Weiss was having a difficult time countering her red-eyed opponent who was very skilled in using her Falx Pistols - weapons with long sickled blades at their ends that she used to counter the heiress' strikes with impressive precision. Ducking under a dust blast, Emerald slashed at Weiss as she parried the mercenary's multiple strikes with Myrtenaster.

Yang also had her hands full with Mercury despite the fact that his leg-based style and weapons would've proved too much for her a mere few months ago. But thanks to training with Davin and his favored kick-boxing style, she was beginning to push ahead as she landed low uppercuts and gauntlet powered jab-hook combos on the mercenary.

Seeing the other students approaching again, Cinder detonated a flash bomb in front of Ruby to give her the time to leap back and levitate into the air, eyes blazing amber as she mentally picked up every loose brick surrounding them and turned them into stony fireballs which she swung around the perimeter of the fighting and at the four RWBY teammates.

"Ack! We can't get in!" Neptune shouted angrily as the eight tried blasting their way past the wall of flying firestones.

Blake, however, was unfazed by the addition of fiery projectiles, her close combat skills improved by her continued training in Beacon and fighting sessions with Davin, which were now paying off as she countered the fire bricks and Roman's cane attacks with just the sheath of Gambol Shroud, using her free fist and forearm to bypass his defenses again and again with a modified Kenpo technique.

Sending the criminal flying back with a spear-armed jab to the chest after blocking multiple cane strikes with her weapon, Blake saw him straighten his coat angrily before shouting into a device in his ear.

"Bring in _everybody!_"

Stopping their attempt to break through Cinder's perimeter momentarily, the eight students turned back to see dozens of the giant robots appearing and coming at them out of the fog. Jaune's teammates turned to their leader, whose mind was racing in thought.

'We won't be able to take them all on our own...'

Suddenly hit with an idea as he noticed the arcade at the edge of the fog in the distance, or at least what was left of it, the knight pressed a finger into his ear with a single thought now running through his mind.

'I hope this works...'

"Cipher! Cipher, can you hear me? I could _really_ use the sound of your voice right about now!"

"Jaune..." Seul began sullenly beside him, "I don't even know if he's still-"

The boy and knight suddenly cringed at the loud ringing sound in their ears. The others looked worried, they couldn't hear what was happening.

'_Oi!..._' a static voice responded, '_Oi! Jaune! You there? Oh am I bloody glad to hear you, mate! I knew I did good by givin' Seul and you the best crackin' transmitters I had!'_

_"_Cipher!" the boy shouted into his own earpiece, "You're still there!"

The rest of the students livened up at the realization that the cryptic had survived, but were increasing in apprehension at the incoming mechanical front.

"Might wanna hurry it along, guys..." Neptune anxiously advised.

'_Of course I'm still 'ere! But we're in a gagging way, those duff Paladins've made a real hash of us... they were right on top of the arcade! If they hadn't stopped just now, we'd be a bloody load of codswallop!_'

"They stopped because they're coming for _us! Dozens of them!_" Jaune shouted, which was followed by a second's pause.

'_Oh bollocks..._'

"So uh..." Seul began with evident hesitation despite the fact that the robots were closing in at a few hundred yards now, "Say, Cipher... is it that time?"

A meaningful pause followed.

'_D'you mean the HOUSE PARTY PROTOCOL, Seul_?' The cryptic sounded alarmed at the mere reference.

"Correct."

Inside the battered control room filled with people underneath Flynn's arcade, the frazzled cryptic closed his eyes and said a brief prayer before hitting a small red button underneath the central control desk's lip.

Above ground, on the first floor of what was left of the arcade, the lights to every arcade machine suddenly came on. Coming to life, the few dozen machines now mecha-shifted into heavily armored androids, each with the face of the arcade character the game featured.

Jaune watched in awe as little specks of light suddenly appeared at the arcade through its demolished first floor walls and the andriods shot up in the air to land between the students and the Paladins in a standoff.

Meanwhile, back inside the subterranean control room, the people turned to watch the incoming live video feeds from the androids on the working monitors. Cipher's jaw hung low.

Finally composing himself, he spoke into his earpiece with no small measure of awe and pride.

"Well I'll be _gobsmacked, _they actually worked. Mates, meet my Automated Constructions... _Autocons _for short. I would've called them 'Decepticons' due to their deceptive nature, but it felt a tad tacky..."

On the video feed featured on the main screen in the room, Seul saluted the camera as his voice rang back through the transmitter, the other students out of the screen area.

'_Right... And we all know how you felt about the term 'Auto Bots'_.'

The line went dead, the transmitters finally giving out as the fighting behind the group of students continued.

"Well alright then, Autocons!~" Nora called gleefully as the standstill came to a suspenseful peak above ground, "Let's roll out!~"

The sudden loud clashing of battle on the other side of the flaming perimeter distracted Cinder for just long enough for the crimsonette to finally clear out the steady stream of fireballs she had been fighting off. Firing a single sniper shot at Cinder, Ruby inflicted a flesh wound on the enchantress who was barely able to dodge it in time to keep from receiving much worse damage.

"AGH!" Cinder cried out in a rare show of anger as the fiery stones fell around the still-fighting RWBY team, "You imbecile!"

Healing her wound with her aura, two long dust-sabres made a fiery appearance in her hands, each glowing as she sent shards of dust crystals flying at Ruby.

The two red-themed opponents re-engaged with their blades as the rest of Ruby's team continued against their evenly matched opponents, each battle tearing down buildings and street posts as the larger mechanized battle near them raged on.

Paladins began to fall as the androids' beam weapons cut through them along the calculated attacks of the Beacon students, but even then, the sheer numbers of the larger war robots were beginning to prove superior.

Under the arcade, a larger man walked up beside the cryptic as the height of anxiety rose again in the room, its occupants noticing the dwindling amount of video feeds remaining.

He spoke up with a deep, authoritative voice that immediately instilled silence in its audience.

"Cyrus, you have done us well, for which I and all of us in this chamber are eternally grateful. But now it's time for me and the other Hunters to rejoin the fight. Those kids need all the help they can get."

"But sir, you got a wife and three girls 'ere. Who's gonna care for them and wotnot?" the cryptic replied with genuine worry.

The blue-eyed man's brows softened in understanding, "Gabriel stays with you to maintain this facility, as will Rowenna to protect you both and any who choose to stay. My wife and May will come along with me to even the field."

Having heard the leader's voice, most of the room's battle-hardened occupants readied their weapons. The man retained his gaze on the hazel-eyed cryptic.

"If my boy's up there like you say he is, I can't stay here and watch. He's just a student, and frankly, he's in over his head..."

Cipher meekly raised his hand to attest to the knight's recently attained abilities but the man held out a hand to stop him.

"...but thank you, Cyrus. This town will always remember what you've done for it."

With a reluctant sigh, the cryptic nodded his head and opened the large door.

"Yes sir, Lord Arc."

An armored woman with jet black hair and a broadsword joined the burly blonde man alongside a younger blonde and blue-eyed girl as the group of fighters left the cryptic's control room.

* * *

**_The Valean War_**  
_TPS (c) 2014_


	36. Vol 1-34: Retribution, Pt 3

**A/N: For all you Mr. And Mrs. Smith fans out there, YES! John Arc looks like a rugged and slightly older Brad Pitt in armor (think Achilles from the movie Troy...now you got it!) and YES! Jane looks like Angelina Jolie but back when she was Lara Croft In Tomb Raider! :D it makes sense, they have lots of kids too...tho the Arcs aren't adopted...**

**Anyways, enjoy the finale of the Retribution arc!**

**Chapter 34 starts now!**

* * *

Stepping out to the sunlight for the first time in several hours, the blue-eyed Hunter felt a pang of despair at the extent of the town's destruction. But catching sight of the battle and with no time to lose, he led the group to the Paladin ranks, ambushing the machines from behind with a loud war cry.

Engaging his massive armored war-gauntlets which were so heavy he could only keep them raised with the aid of his steadily-flowing aura, John Arc pummeled Paladins left and right, taking out a few of them with just one punch.

"May! Go find your brother before he gets himself killed!"

The recently-turned seventeen year old listened to her father as she took off her distinctive family hood to reveal a head of shoulder-length golden blonde hair before ducking through a tumbling fight between a Paladin and two nimble androids in her search for her brother.

The blue-eyed blonde was almost as tall as her brother, younger in age but certainly with a woman's body. She was beautiful like her mother, but the only armor she wore was steel-shinned boots and a leather-bound corset over a simple sleeveless light blue dress with an a-line skirt like Weiss', under which she donned a white long-sleeve blouse with sleeves bunched up to her elbows.

Seemingly unarmed, May silently made her way through the fighting with impressive ease, finally finding her brother behind a lone standing wall without having received a single scratch. Her face positively lit up when she saw him.

"Brother!"

"May-flower!" Jaune ecstatically responded as he turned to her momentarily, quickly turning back to the four-armed Elite Paladin which had now engaged him behind the wall and dispatching the robot with a giant energy-blade strike from Crocea Mors. The girl stared in shock as both halves split apart, the two siblings now behind the wall which provided a slight reprieve from the battle.

"_Brother?_"

"Long story, sis..." He mentioned as he came up to hug his blushing younger sister, "one that up to this point would probably have, mehhh, thirty chapters. Thirty-five tops. You still know how to use those?"

The knight pulled back from the hug and looked at the girl's forearms, which were loosely wrapped with silk-like strands in criss-cross patterns. People thought they were for fashion, or to increase the girl's general air of adorableness, which she _was_. But those accessories were not just for looks.

A meaningful smirk grew on the moe girl's face as Pyrrha came into the clearing where the siblings stood in each other's arms.

"Of _course_ I still do, silly!"

The Spartan approached cautiously, and spoke up somewhat confused.

"...er...Jaune?"

The knight, surprised, spun awkwardly towards his girlfriend before responding.

"Oh, Pyrrha! Look, meet my sister May! May, this is-"

"Pyrrha _Nikos!_" The girl finished his thought in awe, "y-you, you're going to school with Pyrrha Nikos! You guys _know_ each other!?"

The Spartan chuckled a bit, now at ease with the clarified identity of Jaune's blonde companion.

"Yea, you can say that," the Spartan began with a knowing grin at May's blushing brother, "it's a pleasure to meet you, May Arc. Are you here to help us fight?"

The girl nodded energetically.

"Have you discovered your semblance yet?" If the girl was anything like her brother, Pyrrha didn't see the pain in asking. Maybe the girl was a late bloomer, too.

But just then, a large Paladin made its way around the wall behind Pyrrha, readying its cannons to fire. With one end tied only to her little finger, the girl now let her long ribbon fall from one arm, the fabric tensing as she raised it up and manipulated the long strand's flowing course over her head before it suddenly shot towards the robot lethally, a dazzling electrical current coursing through the ribbon into the Paladin and rendering it powerless.

The Spartan turned, staring back at the little girl in shock.

"Oh."

The girl responded, beaming with pride, "I can manipulate electricity. If an object can hold a current, then I can control it too!" The girl paused as she held out her arm, her conductive ribbon wrapping itself around it as if it had a mind of its own, "I want to be a Huntress someday! Hopefully I'll get accepted into Beacon next year like my big brother!"

"I do not doubt it..." The redhead replied with an impressed smile.

"Where's mom and dad?" The knight asked his sister with a tinge of worry in his voice.

"They've rejoined the fight..." The girl now responded solemnly, "both of them."

Jaune's eyes widened a bit, "Dad _too? _He won't be able to hold up for too long! His leg!"

Indeed the Lord of the Arc family had had his fair share of bouts in life, but what had finally taken him out of the occupation some years ago was a devastating bite from a large Nevermore, its beak having twisted his leg back and forth as it took him through the air before the Hunter finally downed the bird with a blast from his plentiful aura reserves. It was a wonder that the limb didn't come off, but the damaging effects proved to be permanent, limiting him to a position of consultant for Huntsmen and Mayor of the town of Dorme.

"We should go find them," Pyrrha stated decisively.

The three fighters now rejoined the fight in search for John and Jane Arc.

* * *

Team RWBY was now in dire straits, every girl was running low on ammo against their opponents since they had been dueling it out for quite some time without reloading.

Weiss turned briefly to glance at her blade as the cartridge pulsed red to indicate her dust levels were low, something that her red-eyed opponent didn't fail to miss.

"_That_ doesn't look good," Emerald pridefully teased as she kept pushing the heiress back with repeated Falx strikes, "looks like we're about to find out who _really_ is the fairest of them all, Ice Queen!"

With an angry riposte from Myrtenaster, the snow-haired girl sent her opponent skidding back several feet with both pistols up in a defensive position as the heiress began to approach her menacingly.

"Do _not_ call me that..."

Weiss Schnee had never lost a match. She was as good as they get, and she wasn't about to tarnish her record now...And with a flash of memory of the match she'd almost lost to Davin, the student was struck with an idea.

Powering her trusty rapier with the last of her dust reserves, Weiss began quickly twirling Myrtenaster in side to side motions as the sword blazed a fiery red, the arcs of light disorienting the red-eyed mercenary.

"What in the world!?" Emerald cried out as the fast-spinning blade made painful contact with her at every hit point, finally disarming the mercenary before a final violet-tinged lunge sent her flying into a brick wall several yards away.

Blake saw her teammate rush off to aid the others against the Paladins as she turned to Roman to begin her final assault.

"Oh, I guess you won't be counting on your _Ice Queen_ for help, eh?" The criminal taunted as he let down several cane strikes around the faunus-girl before sending her back with a well-timed punch.

She mentally recalled her bullet count as she straightened out.

'Fifty eight rounds used already from the clip. That leaves me two bullets. Better make them count.'

Yang was now struggling against Mercury only a few feet away, his nimble movements and several successful dodges causing the brawler to waste her strength. Mercury had studied her semblance while he was at Beacon and knew that as long as he didn't hit her hard enough, there'd be nothing to stop him from executing a killer blow.

"Had enough, Blondie?" He casually stated as he nailed her with a double kick, one to the torso and one to her knee, twisting her leg and causing her to drop down to one knee in pain.

With no extra strength for wisecracks, she got up and re-engaged her opponent with an angry growl.

"You _do_ know that you're not coming out of this alive, do you?..." Torchwick smirked as he continued his assault on the catgirl both psychologically and physically.

"...you're gonna _wish_ I had put you down at the docks when we're done with you all here."

With her emotions finally clawing their way out at the man's remarks, Blake sheathed Gambol Shroud and came at him in a fury.

"AAARGH!"

Roaring in anger, Blake engaged Roman in close combat with her mastered form of hand-to-hand Win Chun, using her fists and forearms as spear, sheath and shield. Landing several quick blows to his chest and abdomen with her fists and elbows, the raven-haired girl heard the satisfying sound of a rib cracking as she sent the criminal tumbling back as he winced in pain.

She was nowhere near done yet.

"You know what it is about people like you?..." She stated fiercely as she resumed her bout with the criminal and his cane, ignoring the pain when the cane came in contact with her arms.

"...you pretend to be superior while exploiting the weak and defenseless for your own gain! It's scum like you that made me want to join the White Fang in the first place!"

"_Oh?_..." Roman echoed as he pushed himself back from her, firing his cane repeatedly as she came at him zig-zagging around the bullets with her semblance but knocking her to the ground with a crushing downwards cane-strike when she got close enough.

"And how's _that_ going for you, kid?..."

Blake looked up from the ground at the hole of the end of Roman's cane pointed at her face, turning to see her partner in a similar situation, with Mercury's foot at the brawler's neck, his loaded ankle rounds aimed at her throat.

"You're out of friends..." Mercury called out loud enough for both girls to hear.

"You're out of _options_..." Roman stated with equal volume and the tone of an executioner.

Yang looked back at Blake with an apologetic look of having failed her team in battle, closing her eyes for the inevitable...

But like a ticking timer going off in her head with a _ding_, Blake suddenly recalled one particular count she had been keeping track of during her fight with Torchwick.

Roman was surprised to see the cat-faunus turn to look back at him with a smirk before speaking up.

"...and _you're_ out of bullets."

The criminal furrowed his brow.

"Huh?"

He fired his cane, only to hear the despairing sound of a bullet-less _click_ as Blake quickly pulled out Gambol Shroud and fired a single shot at Mercury's ankle, disabling his weapon.

Promptly swatting his pained leg to the side, Yang pulled her legs up and put the grey-haired merc down with a leg lock of her own, now giving him the worst ground and pound he had ever experienced in his life.

Resheathing her bladed gun, the raven-haired girl did a pop up over a low cane-swing meant to discapacitate her and landed in a crouch with a hand on her sheath in front of the criminal, who barely managed to speak up.

"You _little_-"

_POW!_

Firing the last bullet into its sheath, Blake aimed Gambol Shroud on her back in a way that its recoil sent the hilt of the blade straight at Roman's face, knocking him out cold.

A trick she had learned from Adam, her old partner in the White Fang.

"You wanna know the _difference_ between you and me, punk?..." Yang now shouted at the powerless mercenary as she beat him to a pulp.

"...I got teammates and friends that actually _care!_" And with a final gauntlet-powered punch to the back of his head as she stressed the last word, the merc went limp.

"Now _where's_ Ruby?" Yang called out to her partner as she got up from her motionless opponent.

* * *

Jaune and Pyrrha now fought their way through the army on either side of May, the girl expertly flaring out a ribbon from each arm around the trio and launching them at two Paladins at a time, leaving them as sitting ducks so that Jaune or Pyrrha could dispatch them.

"May, look out!" Pyrrha shouted as she turned to the girl.

A large Paladin came up from behind and threatened to fire at May, leaving her two companions little time to react. They were backed in beside a large brick wall that surely was once part of a building.

But right when it was about to fire, the three kids saw a large broadsword emerge through its side, shredding the bot through the middle and pulling out as the pieces fell to reveal a woman standing behind the machine, armored in white and with her jet black hair done in a long braid that came down to her waist.

"Jaune..." Pyrrha began in realization, "she bears your family crest! I-Is she your-"

"MOM!" The two siblings cried out joyfully as they went to hug their smiling mother.

The Spartan looked to her other side as she heard loud booming, the sound of metal being crushed now getting closer. But her grip on Milo softened as she saw a blonde Hunter with Jaune's eyes emerge into the fray, knocking back the Paladins around the group and in doing so practically forming a barrier of twisted metal around them.

"Good, you're all safe..." The Hunter stated as he saw his family safe and sound, "Jane, please take Jaune and May back into the control room until the fighting dies down."

"But _dad_..." The knight began to protest.

"No buts. Look, Jaune, you're here, and we appreciate that. But you're only going to get hurt if you stay here any-LOOK OUT!"

Jaune instinctively leapt backwards as his father pulled Pyrrha in with the rest of his family to dodge the rail-gun shot that left a crater where the group once stood. Easily stepping over its smaller fallen counterparts, the Elite Paladin stepped into the clearing, Pyrrha and Jaune's family barely recovering and backing up against the wall.

Before the Hunter could attack, the monger sent down an iron fist on the man who blocked the brunt of the force with a golden, wispy aura-projected barrier. But he suddenly cried out in pain.

"AGH!"

The pressure proved too much as the group heard the man's knee loudly pop, the Hunter falling to his other knee before being punched into the wall by another fist from the four-armed robot.

As the machine focused its plentiful tracking lasers on each member of the weakened group huddled against the wall, Pyrrha desperately cried out to her partner who was barely getting up a few yards behind the giant robot.

"Jaune!"

Standing up, the knight's eyes shot open as he grasped the weight of the situation. Suddenly feeling all the frustration, anger, and inner turmoil he had experienced in his life come to a bitter peak, all thought ceased for a split second as he looked into the terrified eyes of the girl he loved.

"_YAAAAAH!_"

Now redirecting his energy, Jaune's eyes blazed white, his aura exploding in a large white plume out of his back and condensing into dozens of white-bladed swords that even the other students and fighters on the field noticed.

"_AAAAARGH!_"

Throwing both arms at the automated Elite Paladin which had turned to face him, the dozens of blades mentally followed, turning the machine into a pincushion of blades of differing sizes and types. The Arcs and Pyrrha watched in wonder as even some of the Beacon students came around one of the downed Paladins to see the blades continuing to fly through the air into the dying machine.

_Shingshingshingshingshingshingshinnnnnng_...

Finally out of aura-blades, Jaune watched the Elite Paladin go down to the floor with a metallic groan, landing on the other machines with a crash as his family managed to get on their feet.

"Mister and Missus Arc," Pyrrha began with complete awe and pride for her knight, "there's something that Jaune needs to tell you..."

Jaune's mother was silently counting all the protruding blades before they dissipated, suddenly turning to her husband with a small gasp.

"John," she began with a strong but sweet voice, also in awe for her child, "that was more than five dozen projections...that beats your father's record..."

The Hunter, limping slightly, slowly approached his son, reaching a hand out to put it on Jaune's shoulder.

"Jaune...I had no idea-"

The knight didn't let him continue, shrinking back from his reaching hand and backing out of the clearing as the battle raged around him, tears streaking his cheeks.

"No! You didn't!" He angrily responded, but was clearly struggling to rein it in as he continued, "Just stay back for a second, okay? I'm having a bit of a tough time _controlling_ how I feel right now...and...and..."

His voice trailed off as he happened to glance sideways and caught sight of Blake, Ruby and Yang fighting a very fiery Cinder Fall. Completely out of ammo, it was an all out melee fight, Cinder blocking slashes from Gambol Shroud and Crescent Rose as she defended against the swinging brawler at every opportunity. She was an incredibly skilled fighter and could've held them back all day, but she wasn't a patient person in battle.

"Sorry, girls," she said with an almost uninterested air, "but this ends _now_."

Slashing her twin blades across her front at the students, Cinder threw out an arc of fire that sent the girls leaping backwards to avoid the flames. This gave the enchantress all the time needed to press a few buttons on a control pad in the side of her blade.

Looking up, the three teammates saw a plume of light coming down from the sky, making out the shape of an Elite Paladin before it landed with a thundering boom next to Cinder. To their further surprise, three more massive machines landed in the locations of Cinder's teammates, and unlike the other Elites, these Paladins had _cockpits_.

Jaune saw the enchantress board her four-armed Paladin, her three teammates crawling into theirs, and felt his already delicate emotional state worsen as the four giant bots surrounded the three girls with no one around to help them.

"No!..."

His promise at his ancestor's statue on that fateful day in Beacon before entering the Trace coursed through his mind, his reason for wanting to become a Hunter now clearer than ever as his eyes blazed white.

"..._I SWORE IT!_"

His family and friends couldn't keep up as he aura-dashed to his friends' aid.

* * *

With the sounds of weapons arming and Cinder's rail-gun flexing over the robot's shoulder to aim at the teammates, the three girls stood back to back as the four iron mongers boxed them in.

"Yang..." Blake muttered, her voice cracking in helplessness.

"We did what we could, Blake..." She responded half-heartedly as she still engaged an empty Ember Celica. They weren't about to go without a fight.

But Ruby suddenly squinted at a strange white streak between two of the machines coming in their direction from a distance.

"Is that...?"

_BLAM!_

The rail-gun fired, but within the millisecond of time between firing and impact, a solid white barrier came up around the girls, protecting them from certain death as Jaune entered the small space now dashing back and forth between the trio with incredible speed while blocking and deflecting sixteen arms and cannons with aura-projected gauntlets and pulses.

May stopped in her tracks along with the rest of her family and the Beacon students a few yards outside the Paladin circle as they saw how the white knight, now _literally_ glowing white, didn't let a single punch or bullet break through his defenses.

"That's _incredible_..." The young girl muttered aloud, echoing the thoughts of everyone else in the group.

But now the four bots each engaged their rail-guns, the large devices lighting up as they powered their shots on Jaune.

"We've got one shot to take them out!" Ruby called out.

"_I'll cover you!_" The knight called out as he flashed back and forth to block the robots' advances. Even with his aura, Jaune was finding it nearly impossible to fit in a single offensive move between so many defensive maneuvers.

Blake cried out above the gunfire, "But there are _four_ of them, how are we going to-"

_Shinnng!_

A flash of white left an Elite gun-less. Weiss.

"Go now!" Ruby cried out, each girl striking at once.

With their new jumping abilities taught by Seul, they each easily reached the full height of the robots in one bound, two slashes and a one-two combo in mid-air disabling the other three rail-guns.

The Paladins made a fatal mistake as they now turned to open fire on team RWBY and the other students. They had given Jaune his chance.

"_GRRRRR!_"

Growling with the sheer power that his aura was emitting, the white knight lifted both aura-infused arms out at the group of robots with palms open. The machines now slowed to a halt as the augmented magnetic force could actually be seen pulsing rapidly through the air, the metal groaning as it was manipulated against its will.

"Oh my dust, _NO_, Jaune!" Pyrrha let out as the knight turned the guns forcibly away from the group. Somehow, she could sense where Jaune's aura was about to take this.

"..._RRR-YAAAH!_"

And now clenching his fists shut, the people gasped as the four Elite Paladins imploded under the crushing force, each machines' four arms and two legs crumpling into the torso before being slung away as hard as the eye could see by the Knight.

Jaune turned to see the machines disappear into the horizon as his white aura cascaded around him, the very heat of which was already charring the ground. Finally, it died down, leaving the knight heavily panting where he stood.

"Look over there!" May suddenly shouted, prompting the group to look back at the town.

Having seen what Jaune had done, the few dozen Paladins left were beginning to leave, blasting off in the sky in the same direction. But the group saw only three Elite Paladins left on the ground heading in their direction. Something was strange.

"What are they doing?" Weiss asked as they continued their approach.

Instead of heading in their direction to fight them, the Paladins were trying to keep up with a fourth normal Paladin which seemed to be trying to do something as the machines finally neared the group.

And to everyone's surprise, the smaller machine spoke.

"_Bunch of cock ups! Trying to get in a good one all day and zilch! Not one port! Now I'm really cheesed off!_"

Seul deadpanned, "Is that-?"

In its frustration, the normal Paladin gave up, shooting two of the seemingly pacified Elites with an arm cannon and massive grenade launcher mounted on each of its metal arms before turning and downing the third Elite with a massive uppercut.

As it walked over to the tensed group, it spoke again to relieve their fears with a metal-armed salute.

"_Cyrus Fergusson, hacker extraordinaire at your service, ol' chaps!_"

"...But how?" Jaune asked incredulously.

"_Oh I been trying to gen up on these babies ever since word of Paladins hit the rumor forums! And finally today I figure out how to crack my way into one! Almost had these Elites too but their programming is a tad more difficult, it is. Hard lines for me! Well I gave up on them for now, left them to their own devices, though they won't be needing them anymore heh..._"

"But all you have to do is get inside them..." Jaune wondered aloud.

Seul, however, was more alarmed than anything at the last bit of info.

"Wait. You're _not_ controlling those Elites anymore? You didn't shoot the third one just now! Cipher you have to shoot them in the _head_ cavity or else they'll-"

_BLAM!_

A rail-gun shot tore right through Cipher's cockpit, his Paladin going to the ground in flames.

"CYRUS!"

Jaune and his family ran to the burning machine while the rest of his team and Seul went to tear apart the last Elite. Unable to reach the cockpit due to the flames, John and his children were held back by Jane.

"Allow _me_..."

Sheathing her broadsword, she moved her arms in front of herself in a fluid motion around and around as she glowed cobalt blue with her aura, and the students were surprised to see water suddenly condensing in the center of her movements in front of her.

Once she had gathered enough, she whipped her arms out, dousing the flames over the entire Paladin. But taking a good look at it, the family only looked at each other in confusion.

Next to the fallen Elite, the rest of team JNPR and Seul had done pretty well with angrily taking the robot to pieces...but they couldn't help raising their brows at Nora as she continually hammered the flattened AI Unit into the ground.

"Uh, Nora..." Ren began sadly, "I think you got it."

"No!" She responded energetically, still not satisfied with her work, "must do it for Cipher!"

As she continued hammering it, the three turned to look at each other with downcast expressions until the sound of another voice called their attention.

"Bloody robots, those wonky things ain't even worth peanuts!" They blinked as they saw the cryptic casually walk over to the main group before turning to look incredulously at the hammer-wielder, "And oi! She still goin at it? Always full o' beans, that one..."

"Cyrus!" Jane exclaimed as the group converged on the hacker with relief, hugging the very confused newcomer, "thank dust you're alright!"

"Um...of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Where _were_ you this whole time?"

"Behind that big wall over there." He said, pointing at the other side of the wall where the Arcs had been attacked. Jaune pointed at the same wall to be sure.

"_That_ wall over there?"

"Right as rain, mate! _That_ wall there!" The hacker confirmed, now expressing slight confusion as he continued, "Why? Did I miss something?"

The group merely traded knowing glances.

* * *

**A/N: Family-wise, yea, I'm mostly sticking with Tusk Act IV's descriptions of the sisters. Rowenna is based on Shaga from Ben-to, Gabriel on Saber from Fate/Zero but suited up, and May on Sakuma Mayu from Cinderella Girls except blonde. **

**And yes, Jaune is indeed going beast mode more often :) anyways, stay tuned for next chapter, The Eye of the Storm!**

**Happy Reading!**


	37. Vol 1-35: The Eye of The Storm

_**The Eye of The Storm  
**__-XXXV-_

* * *

"Cipher!" Seul called out with a relieved smile, approaching the cryptic with arms open. The moment he got within arm's reach, however, Seul slapped him, nearly knocking off the hacker's spectacles.

"Ow!"

"We thought you were _dead_."

"Wot? Course not!"

"But we thought you were _inside_ that Paladin!" Pyrrha lamented.

Cipher's eyes widened in disapproval.

"Oh Monty _forbid!_ I control it remotely... or _controlled_ it, at least. Never would I enter those death traps!"

Regaining her usual composure, May was the first to beg to differ.

"Well," she began with a meaningful smirk, "_Gabriel_ sure wouldn't mind seeing you try it..."

The cryptic's thick brows shot up.

"Really? S-She said that? Never figured she was the type!"

May grinned adorably, "Yyyep! Just so you know!"

As the cryptic dropped into pensive thought, Team RWBY quickly and quietly scooched over as a group to the Spartan. Ruby spoke up to Pyrrha with a questioning glare at the blonde young girl in the middle of the group.

"Who's _that?_" the crimsonette cautiously asked.

"Jaune's sister, May."

"Aww," Weiss unexpectedly cooed as if she were looking at a puppy, "She's like, _super_ cute!"

Blake looked in amusement at her leader's concerned expression.

"What, worried that the new girl will encroach in your cuteness department?"

Ruby pouted adorably in response as Yang playfully jabbed the catgirl for her snarkiness.

"Well, we are glad that you're all right," John finally concluded with a grin, "Now let's go back to the arcade to celebrate."

The group returned to the arcade with the cheering survivors while Cipher's surviving androids high-fived him on his way as well.

* * *

Now inside the control room, the students met the rest of the present Arc family.

"Was there any trouble while we were out?" Jane asked her daughters as she tended to her husband's returned injury.

"Gabriel manned the controls while I mopped up at the surface," the elder of the two began curtly with an easy-going grin. But Blake couldn't help feeling a sense of familiarity in her face.

Like her father, Rowenna had blonde hair which was long and had it styled similar to Yang's, but unlike the brawler who cared ever so deeply for her golden locks, this woman's hair looked more like it had never been touched by a comb. Wearing a red tracksuit, she hardly looked the type to take to slaying monsters.

"By which she means she held off a single Paladin with a roll of toilet paper," the younger Arc added. Rowena scoffed.

"Well _that_ pilot believed it was a pocket nuke. It worked well enough, hehe. The faunus ejected and ran away."

"It's her semblance..." the younger sister explained to the confused group of students, "She can alter people's perception of different objects... around _her_, things aren't always as they seem. At least this time it gave us a nifty Paladin for Cipher to work with."

Gabriel, on the other hand, was dressed a little different. Of the Arc children, her hair was furthest from blonde. It was still golden, but with a slight tinge of ginger red that glinted in the updo that she wore: braid in the back tied up in a bun with bangs that fell in front of her lightly freckled pale face between two chin-length side bangs.

Of course, not much of her do was noticed under her stylish dark fedora and considerably nicer garb than her older sister. She wore unironed dress slacks which hugged her otherwise thinner frame and a black vest over a white short sleeve button-up. Blake might've noticed these things had she stopped staring at Rowena.

"Do I have something on my face, student?" the maned woman finally asked the blinking catgirl with a smirk and raised brow, "Ugh, just make yourself useful and hand me my scrunchie, it's on your arm..."

The students watched the cat-faunus seemingly drop out of her normal character as she blinked at the woman a few more times.

"But all I have on my arm is my armban- oh," Blake responded unusually slowly, only to stop her weak protest as she saw the silver scrunchie instead of her silver armband.

Taking it off in her growing state of uncertainty, he handed it to the grinning woman, who merely chuckled once she took it. In the blink of an eye, what was once a scrunchie was now an armband again.

"Well of _course_ it's not a scrunchie..." The young woman stated laughing, her family deadpanning at her usual antics, "Because it _is_ your armband, you putz! Here..."

She handed back the armband to a lightly blushing Blake as the rest of the group began their own conversations, leaving the two in their own little corner.

Blake was about to leave to rejoin her team so she could avoid this increasing awkwardness, but when the young woman pulled out her real scrunchie to tie back her mass of blonde hair, Blake's feeling of déjà-vu returned, her cat ears now twitching.

And her ear-twitching senses were _never_ wrong.

"Seriously though..." the young woman continued as she tucked large quantities of hair through the hair accessory, "what's wrong with you."

"You look awfully... familiar," Blake finally replied as the young woman finished the long process of taming her hair.

"Well I'm not one to be recognized for my _looks_, I'm actually more of a _writer_..." Rowena began with amusement, but suddenly paused in her action of tidying her hair as her eyes narrowed just a bit on her new acquaintance, "And _you_ seem more of a _reader_."

"That I am."

"Then tell me..." the blonde asked with a suggestive grin, "Have you recently read anything... indecent?"

Ignoring the tone of what would normally have been a inappropriate question, the avid reader went with her gut.

"Well, 'All books can be indecent books, though recent books are bolder'..."

"...'For filth, I'm glad to say, is in the mind of the beholder'..." the blonde finished Blake's quote, the author's note to the inside cover of a certain notable recipient of NinjaCon's 'Best Literary Series' Award, "Might you be... a fan?"

Blake nodded her head energetically, speechless to find another reader of the same series. But how did she know this strange woman? The catgirl finally spoke up.

"T-Toyota clan or Honda clan?" Her voice was shaking in anticipation as she asked the beaming woman which sultry group of protagonists she rooted for.

"Neither. The Suzukis have much stronger jutsus," Rowena replied matter-of-factly.

"But they're not seen to fraternize with the two clans until the next installment which isn't due till next year!" Blake cried out emotionally, "How would you know their seductive ways!"

The blonde now reached into her tracksuit top, pulling out a very familiar pair of glasses and now completing the look of the picture inside every cover of the notable recipient of said NinjaCon's 'Best Literary Series' Award, driving Blake's ear-twitching senses crazy.

"...because _I_... am the _author_."

Blake's knees turned to jelly as her mouth dropped to form an "O" shape of awe, an angelic light forming around the writer in the faunus-girl's eyes. The raven-haired girl was probably seconds away from doing obeisance to her right then and there.

"Sushi-sensei..." Blake muttered to herself as her heart raced in her chest.

"Umm, what just happened." Yang nudged Ruby as they glanced over in Blake's direction near a side of the control room, loud enough for the catgirl to hear.

Blake seriously looked like she might elope with her new acquaintance at any moment.

"Oh!" the feline faunus began nervously, "Nothing! Uh, Rowenna and I were just going to continue our conversation... over there."

Grabbing her hand, a blushing Blake dragged the grinning Rowena to the far side of the room to pick her brains on her inspiration for Ninja's of Love. The two sisters merely blinked as the Arc daughter waved at them before disappearing behind the small crowd of celebrating survivors in the room.

* * *

"So..."

The Lord of the Arcs spoke light-heartedly as he glanced at his son, the group finally done laughing after Nora's energetic and exaggerated recounting of how she and Ren got together after weathering an army of Grimm and hurricane of dark aura which would've put the Great War to shame.

"Miss Nikos says you wanted to tell us something?"

"Please, you may call me Pyrrha," the Spartan interjected amiably to whom she now considered an extension of her very own family.

"Very well," the man smiled at her cordiality, "So what was it, Jaune?"

Jaune cleared his throat as he received an encouraging smile from his partner.

"Well it really isn't anything you haven't seen already, I guess I pretty much laid it all out on the field today..."

His parents paid close attention as his father continued.

"I see... And was that your semblance? Polarity?"

"Erm... no..." Jaune hesitated, not sure how to put it.

"-It was mine," Pyrrha stated, surprising Cipher, Seul and the Arcs. Jane however raised an eyebrow at the Spartan, already beginning to read into the dynamic between her son and his partner.

"Let me show you," Jaune continued as he sensed their confusion, now glancing at his mother, "Mom, do you mind showing us your semblance?"

The loving woman smiled sweetly.

"Of course, Jaune." And in a moment, a ball of flowing water spun over her glowing palm in mid-air, the students now gazing at her ability in wonder.

Jaune now stretched his hand to touch hers, the white aura surrounding it pulsing blue for just a moment before suddenly forming another ball of water above it too. Jane gasped, spilling the water on the floor.

Lifting his other hand, Jaune smiled as he shifted the small mass of water back and forth between them in front of his audience.

"See," he began to explain, "You can take water out of the air and from different objects to _bend_ it to your will. Now I can too!"

May lit up in excitement, lightly bouncing where she sat, "Try _me! _Try me too, big brother!"

Yang leant in to Ruby with a whisper so that no one could hear, "Gosh, she really _is_ cute! Look out for competition in the cute little sister role, heh!"

"Oh, _shush!_" Ruby chided her sister before being pulled in a playful headlock in retaliation.

Jaune, lightly chuckling along with the group at the two sisters, now approached his sister and repeated the process, his aura briefly pulsing light blue to signal its completion. Lifting his hand up, small forks of electricity ran up and down his fingers.

He grinned, "Oh I _know_ I'm gonna like _this_ one!" May ran up to him, hugging him again in her excitement.

Their father now gazed at his smiling son in wonder, "You're a Mimic... haven't heard of that kind of semblance existing after the time of the Great War!"

The man paused before continuing with a sly smirk, "You ever try using several semblances at once?"

The knight paused, considering the idea that hadn't yet passed through his mind in curiosity.

"No... I've only ever tried using one at a time."

"Well," John continued as he stood up with difficulty, "If you can handle dozens of projections, I think you can handle juggling a few semblances."

"I'll keep it in mind."

He walked over to Jaune, putting both hands on his shoulders and looking him in the eyes.

"But there's something I need to tell you... Son, I was wrong... I only ever went hard on you to help you grow, learn, _fight_. But you have managed to do all of that on your own, and today... you saved our lives. I'm proud of you, Jaune," he let out a long sigh as he closed his eyes and lightly squeezed his son's shoulders, "I'm _so_ proud of you... and I hope you can forgive your old man for being hard on you for so long..."

Taking his son in an embrace, there was hardly a dry eye in the group that surrounded them.

Pulling himself back from his son and clearing the knot from his own throat, the Hunter continued with pride practically shaking his son, "And _wow_ you've got an Aura on you! I could feel it goin practically from across town!"

"Yea, it's been doing that lately..." Jaune chuckled nervously.

"Your mother was _right_. There's a reason the way things turned out the way they did! I mean," John continued, slowing down in realization, "_None_ of us here were even able to unlock your aura before you went to Beacon, which should've been a sign for what you'd be capable of doing... but who unlocked it?"

"Ahem... also me," Pyrrha meekly stated after clearing her throat.

The Huntress' instincts now focused on the lightly blushing Spartan.

"Unlocking an aura at seventeen? That must've been difficult," the armored woman stated, seemingly nonchalant. Seemingly. "It must've required a strong aural connection."

"Well, we _do_ work very well together as a team..." the blushing redhead continued until Yang began coughing.

"*cough* In more ways than _one!_ *cough cough*"

"What was that?" Jane responded quickly with a gaze that immediately withered the brawler's humor.

Yang straightened up, "Uh, nothing! I just have allergies... to... anything... that, comes from a _ship!_" she finished with a plastered grin on her face.

Jaune and Pyrrha facepalmed at the terrible, terrible pun.

"Jaune..." the black-braided Huntress began with a firm motherly tone, "is there anything _else_ you'd like to tell us?"

He shut his eyes and braced himself.

"...Pyrrha Nikos and I are dating!"

The bustling room full of people suddenly fell silent.

Opening his eyes, Jaune saw his parents glaring at him incredulously and his sisters glaring at the Spartan with not so amiable expressions, even Rowenna, who was standing all the way across the room where she had been explaining in great detail the love triangles (which were more like pentagons or octagons) and Ninja harems in her works to the eager catgirl.

"Mom, dad," Jaune began with authority, owning his actions as Pyrrha walked up beside him, "We met on our second day at Beacon, we became partners, and _yes_, she unlocked my aura. She also trained me for _weeks_, not because she had to, but because she wanted to..."

He paused for a moment, sensing no change in his audience, and continued.

"And the reason I can _fight_, and why I can say I'm still _alive_ today, is largely due to Pyrrha. And you know what? _Yes_, I like her... no wait, that doesn't quite say it," the knight briefly looked up in thought before finding the right words.

"...I _love_ her." He turned to smile warmly at his Spartan as they took each other's hands.

"And _you_, Pyrrha-" the Hunter began before being cut off by the elated Spartan.

"-Feel the _exact_ same way!" she stated firmly, grinning joyfully at her partner.

The room continued dead silent, the Arcs only staring at the couple until May spoke up, the first to break the silence. And surprisingly, she was giggling.

"Now that's just _awesome!_" she began gleefully, already having gotten to know Pyrrha a bit during the fight, "I like her!"

May was naturally an excellent judge of people's character and her relatives trusted that, and that being the case, the rest of her family - and the room - now relaxed as the other survivors returned to their conversations.

"Well then," the Hunter grinned, opening his arms to hug Pyrrha as well, "Welcome to our home!"

Hugging the couple, John grunted at the sudden pressure of the rest of the students joining in the group hug around them.

"Looks like our family has grown quite a bit today," the Huntress mused with a grin at her daughters.

"Yeaaa... _about_ that, Missus Arc," Cipher now began, chuckling nervously as he gingerly placed his arm around the blushing Gabriel, "hehe."

Her fierce gaze promptly returned.

* * *

Later that evening, the Beacon students and Seul now found themselves in Jaune's home, the celebrations now having moved above ground to Arc Manor.

Most of the day and afternoon had been spent revising the damage and salvaging what they could of the town since the survivors were already able to mourn their losses before the arrival of their saviours.

And now, plate after plate of food cooked by merry volunteer chefs were passed around the large, long table at which the Arcs and students sat, a few other tables laid out for the townsfolk in the large dining hall. Weiss was especially impressed with the display.

"Is it always this full in your home, Lord Arc?" she asked politely.

The Hunter laughed heartily, "Most days, _yes!_ We leave our doors open to all those who wish to visit and occasionally even stay!" He smiled at the quiet young boy at the table.

"So everyone here are citizens that _want_ to serve people?" Blake asked incredulously as smiling townspeople served another hearty helping of food for everyone at the tables.

Honestly, it was tough for the faunus-girl to believe. All her life she had known humans and Faunus _forced_ into labor, but looking at the smiling Faunus waiters and attendants in front of her, this was something new entirely!

But then again, this was turning out to be a day like no other already.

Blake had met her favorite author by _far_, and continually checked her belongings to ensure that her scroll, which now housed a digital manuscript of the newest installment for the Ninjas of Love series which wasn't due for release until the following _year_, never left her side.

She silently looked forward to devouring it upon her return to Beacon, and maybe, _maybe_, even showing the copy to Davin as a 'welcome-back-to-the-living' treat/joke, as the idea of sharing it with Sun still felt incredibly awkward.

"Yes," Jane spoke up, bringing Blake out of her personal thoughts, "Everyone here cooks because they want to, serves because they want to..." and warmly laughing at Sun and Neptune as they devoured noodle woks like nobody's business, "and _eats_ because they want to!"

"Wow..." Blake mused as she took another small bite of the mountain of tuna salad in front of her.

Team RWBY was impressed by the hospitality and goodwill that surrounded the manor, team JNPR reveled in the idea of being able to return whenever they wished thanks to their leader being an Arc, and the present members of team VNDS loved the food.

"To comrades and to victory!" the Hunter yelled out in mirth with a glass in the air, the dozens of invitees repeating the motion and cheer as they continued their hearty meals.

But the Lord of the Arc family wasn't quite as cheery anymore - the lingering nagging in his mind had grown into doubt since the moment he had realized exactly how powerful his son's aura proved to be. And that brought up questions that needed to be answered _soon_.

After a few more servings, John patted the back of his son who sat between him and his mother at an end of the table, with Pyrrha and his daughters on the other side. He leaned in to whisper something in his ear.

"Let's take a walk."

* * *

Jaune stretched to ease his full stomach as he walked outside the manor with his father, the evening lights being the stars and shattered moon.

"You did well out there today, Jaune," he began as the two continued walking forward.

Jaune smiled as he heard his father finally speaking to him with an accepting tone, something he had wished for for years.

"Thanks, dad. I really do owe it to you and mom too, she never gave up on me... and you, in your own way, I guess, never did either."

The man smiled, "You're my only son, Jaune. No amount of disappointment could ever change that."

Jaune deadpanned at his father, "Uh, _thanks_, dad."

"Not what I meant!" he held his hands up in apology with a small smile, "I mean that no matter what happens, I'm your father and I'll protect you from anything that may come, even if you can't protect yourself. You're my _boy_, Jaune..."

Jaune grinned internally, realizing that even though he had learned to be resourceful and caring from his mother, he had actually learned courage and resolve from his dad all along.

"I think I'm starting to get what you mean..." Jaune responded, recalling his own oath at the feet of his ancestor's statue as the two walked along for a while longer.

After rounding a corner of the large house, both Arcs were now far enough away from Arc Manor that the warm lights of celebration now dissipated into the grayscale hues of night.

"And after the way you fought today," his father began after a minute or two with certainty, his smile slowly fading as he continued, "I'd bet you'll be able to protect Remnant in a way that few others _can_..."

Jaune felt the weight of the meaningful silence that followed, his instincts suddenly putting him on edge as he stopped in his tracks in a moonlit clearing between the back of their home and the forest. His father took a few more steps forward before turning to face him.

"As a matter of fact..." he mentioned with a low tone, "in a way that _none_ other has been able to do for generations."

"Dad?" Jaune's instincts were making him anxious as his father now tensely stood across from him sizing him up, cautiously gazing at the knight in the same way a cop would size up a serial killer when finally meeting in person.

"You're one of the Unbalanced, aren't you."

"What do you-"

"_Don't_."

The Hunter put up a hand, wanting this to get straight to the point, "Ozpin must've told you by now. It's obvious by the way you fought today. Using that amount of aura would've _killed_. Any. Other. Hunter. But not you. So...?"

Jaune sighed, not taking his attention away from his suddenly serious father.

"Yes... I am."

"How many others know."

"Um, Ozpin, Goodwitch, Pyrrha, and two others."

"Others?" John made this sound like a police interrogation.

"Yea, one of them's the blonde girl inside, Yang... and the other... well," the knight dropped his gaze for just a moment, "The other is out of commission for the moment."

John sighed, much like his son but almost impatiently, "Can you trust them?" Jaune could easily recall everything he and each person he had just mentioned had gone through.

"With my life."

"...Good. Now this part's important, Jaune." The knight now focused on his still-tense father as he continued, "Which form of the Unbalanced are you, Light? Or Dark?"

Frankly, Jaune was surprised his father knew so much about such a rare subject.

"Light."

Surprisingly, John now relaxed, sighing again in what almost seemed like relief.

"Oh, thank dust. And you can control it, which is good news."

Jaune raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Why? What's so bad about Dark? According to Ozpin, they're just different forms of power, not 'Good and Evil'..."

"Yes," the Hunter agreed, "but Dark energy is what the Grimm are made of. It's their life force. And if you think negative _feelings_ draw them in quick, heh, well you got another thing comin with the whole dark _aura_ thing goin on..."

Jaune's eyes widened as he now realized why the Grimm count around Beacon had gone up so high over the past few months - the _reason_ why Ozpin had reluctantly cleared team JNPR to go to those high-grade extermination missions due to the creatures' rising quantity was now lying in the school's infirmary room!

The knight's reaction was something his father _definitely_ didn't miss, his previous tension now returning full force as he furrowed his brows at his son.

"You know who the Dark one of the Unbalanced _is_, don't you."

"Y-Yea..." Jaune began, "He goes to Beacon with us, his semblance manifested shortly before mine did."

"Oh _dust!_ In the name of Monty Oum!" his father cursed, dragging his hand down his face as he exhaled sharply, his other hand perched on his waist. That last bit really seemed to get him worked up.

"...How can you be sure?"

Jaune raised an eyebrow.

"What are you talking about, dad?"

"I said, how can you be _sure_..." John repeated intensely, taking a step closer as he pointed at his son, "That he's of the _Unbalanced_, and not something _worse?_"

"He's not a _Grimm_, dad, if _that's_ what you're asking."

"Oh _really?_" the man responded, his brows shooting up and nodding his head in mock agreement, "Let me guess, did this 'student' just _happen_ to drop into your lives through some type of wormhole?"

Jaune's heart skipped a beat as the color drained from his face. John narrowed his eyes.

"I thought so. Someone _sent_ that device to find someone of the Unbalanced, and it found _you_. Who and why? I don't know. But by finding a Light one of the Unbalanced, whoever sent it would know that the Dark one of the Unbalanced would be sure to find him shortly. They have a tendency of... finding... each other. Could've waited around for _decades_."

The explanation _did_ seem to fill in the gaps in Jaune's theories as his father continued.

"And you see, Jaune, the _leader_ of the Grimm has the same dark aura signature as the Dark one of the Unbalanced, and either one can control that kind of anomaly. But of course, one of their auras was artificially made, while the other was _born_ that way."

"I already know that," Jaune replied, trying to stay as firm as possible.

"Well here's what you _don't_ know." John paused before elaborating, gesturing and pacing back and forth as he continued, "people say that these wormholes are super rare, some say that there's only one that's ever been made, but they're _wrong_. The original faction of men-turned-Grimm were able to use dark energy to open wormholes through space and walk right through, some as easily as with a flick of their weapon. And that's not the worst part..."

"W-What do you mean?" Jaune's anxiety was slowly bleeding through into his voice.

"The _leader_ of the Grimm, the insane tyrant who started it all... can also _transform_. Into any Grimm form..." The Hunter looked his son dead in the eyes, "...or _human_ form."

"H-How do you know all this?" Jaune asked his father who now glared at him darkly, about to reveal one of the deepest secrets he knew.

"Because," the man sighed deeply in an attempt to relax, "The man who outed Tyranus and his men so long ago, the man who led a fledgling army against the twisted forms of dark aura that their own commanders had taken... was an Arc. The first Arc. And the dark commander's research that the few people who even know about this story say was lost... _wasn't_."

Jaune's jaw practically dropped.

"_WHAT?_"

His father took out a little black book, aged and tattered but impossibly still intact.

"Our ancestors passed it down our family line after the first few generations learned to augment their aura capacity, using Tyranus' notes to create naturally-occurring genes in our family that lend our children to have massive amounts of aura."

Jaune stared at it for a moment before narrowing his eyes at his father, "But that's not all the book contains, is it."

"No," the knight's father began, "no, it has _everything_ from the commander's original notes - from projection manipulation to the dark arts of dust infusion and dark energy control. As you can imagine, our forefathers swore never to delve into those chapters... as will you."

"_What?_" Jaune was sure he didn't have a bottom jaw anymore as his father handed him the book.

"Take it. And with it, you must save Remnant. It may not have much time."

"Why would how say _that?_" Jaune was surprised he hadn't received a heart attack yet.

"Well here's a little more history for ya. The Commander, the leader, of the Grimm, _started_ this whole Unbalanced phenomenon. By artificially infusing himself and his followers with dark energy, they threw off the balance of aura in Remnant. With the generations that followed, many were born with too much light energy in their auras, generating massive power surges if they ever managed to unlock them."

"Like me?"

"Yes, and the same with any Dark one of the Unbalanced. You see, it wasn't until a few generations later that the _those_ guys showed up too, nature's way of trying to counterbalance the amount of light energy thriving in Remnant. Way more rare, and _way_ more difficult to unlock."

Jaune blinked before responding, "So you're saying there were _several_ ones of the Unbalanced that lived on Remnant at once?"

The man took a moment to collect his thoughts, "...Once upon a time, yes. But that all changed in the events that led to the Great War. The commander and his army rolled through the whole planet, using their unbalanced auras to mentally contact others of the Unbalanced and killing them left and right until only two were left. This was to balance nature as much as they could so that only one of each form of the Unbalanced ever existed at once. They succeeded. Chaos ensued, many people died. Aura's aren't as powerful as they used to be anymore."

"But why, dad? _Why?_" Jaune was getting impatient, knowing that there had to be a plan behind all of it.

"Well, because it minimized their only legitimate threats... and because they realized they only needed _one_. One Dark one of the Unbalanced to exist."

He looked away, a look of disgust on his face, "Jaune, they learned how to _turn_ people with unlocked auras, turn them into grotesque Grimm hybrids using their auras so they could stay under their control, then sucking their life-force dry when they were done so they could live longer!"

He turned back to Jaune with solemn concern.

"...and if the leader ever got his hands on a Dark one of the Unbalanced who had _manifested_, he'd be able to turn him and take his naturally infinite aura, making his _own_ reserves permanently infinite and thus granting him immortality!"

Jaune stood as pale as a piece of paper.

"Holy. Mother of dust." Jaune couldn't believe what he was hearing, but it made so much sense. He had now decided to share every bit of it with Davin as soon as he could, he had to warn him... right? John seemed to sense his son's resolve.

"With that kind of power, the commander would be able to end our way of life on Remnant as we know it. So you see, Jaune, what you now have to do is find out who that student really is."

Jaune paused for a moment to think.

"But he doesn't remember anything about himself before coming out of that wormhole."

That seemed to catch the Hunter off guard.

"Hmm... that's strange. The only way that happens is when someone has been sealed within someone _else's_ hammerspace for a long period of time. The Commander's forces learned that from experience when storing prisoners for turning... its in the book."

The man's somewhat confused expression slowly rehardened, "But he _could_ be lying..."

"Well there's only one way to find out," Jaune declared, his resolve refusing to be broken, "Getting his memory back, right?"

"_If_ he's telling the truth. Firstly, as the creator of the anomaly and the one who knew it best, the commander wrote that he never lost his memory no matter which wormhole he took..."

Jaune gazed incredulously at his father, his aura now lighting up around him.

"_Dad! _You have to trust me!" the knight retorted hotly, "I really don't think he's trying to lie to us, not after all we've been through..."

Now taking a moment to reconsider, John finally calmed down again, "Fine. If this kid is what you say he is, then I wouldn't know. The dark energy in the wormhole takes the memories, but the book doesn't say if it can return them."

Jaune sighed, his aura fading as it relaxed as well.

"We'll _find_ a way."

He turned to walk away, but was stopped by his father's advice.

"Look, we won today, and Dorme is safe for now. But heed my words, Jaune, I doubt this is over. Their leader has yet to capture a Dark one of the Unbalanced who has manifested... _alive_, at least. And there hasn't even _been_ a Dark one of the Unbalanced who has manifested in five generations, so you can bet those Grimm leaders will come out of whatever dark hole they've been hiding in to get him, and you may be the only one powerful enough to stop them. The way I see it, we're just in the eye of the storm... and the trailwinds are always stronger on the other side..."

The knight turned to look at his father, and was somewhat surprised to see he a small smile on his face.

"...but, for what it's worth, I now believe that if there's anyone who can help Remnant weather the storm now, it's _you_, son," he chuckled lightly as he walked over to him and patted him on his shoulder, glancing at the little book, "it's _you_... so I suggest you start studying!"

Jaune opened the book, but his brows only furrowed as he flipped through its pages. He looked back at his father in surprise.

"It's _blank!_"

John laughed as if it were the punchline of a joke, "Ahh, you'll figure it out! C'mon, let's go back... I heard that guy-friend of yours with the pink highlights offered to make pancakes..."

The man amiably side-hugged his son as they made their way back to the house.

"You know dad," Jaune began as they neared his home, "You really gotta work on askiing questions without being so... _intense. _Ya kinda tend to do that a lot. You could've just told me the story and given me the book."

His father grinned, "Hah! Try fighting the wars _I've_ fought over the years and come back to your school life, see if you handle things the same way."

"What, you mean like some kind of time-line Divergence?" The knight scoffed, "I'm pretty sure someone's already written a story about that kind of thing..."

"Ack," His father replied light-heartedly, "You kids and your fics these days..."

* * *

_**The Valean War  
**__TPS (c) 2014_


	38. Vol 1-36: The Betrayal, Pt 1

_**The Betrayal, Pt. 1  
**__-XXXVI-_

* * *

Every student had let out a sigh of relief when later that night Jaune was successfully able to summon a battered ADA with his trusty key fob.

The Beacon students had then boarded the airship along with Seul and a new passenger, May Arc. The young girl was elated to know how Ruby had received early admission into Beacon, and after the serious conversation with her parents to give her permission to join the group proved successful, the younger Arc now hoped that a trip to Vale and her new friends' recommendations would grant her a similar invitation.

It was currently well past midnight, and Vale was still a few hours away. The teams had so far spent their time resting with the exception of team JNPR and the young Arc, who listened intently in their usual rows while the gleeful hammer-wielder retold the events of that day. When Nora finished, Ren looked over at his partner with an impressed expression.

"Nora, I think this may be the first time you tell the story exactly how it went..."

Jaune and Pyrrha had their chins perched on their arms over the backs of their seats to listen to the conversation between May, Ren and Nora, Jaune now taking the chance to speak up with a chuckle.

"Well Ren, I really don't think there was anything more that needed polishing... I mean, Nora _literally _broke that Paladin's legs!"

"That _was_ quite impressive," Pyrrha added sincerely before letting out a light yawn, an action that was soon repeated by the stoic.

May nodded in agreement with the Spartan before grinning at the pair of yawns that had followed.

"Well I can't wait to get a chance to learn with you guys, I really hope that Principal Ozpin likes me!"

"It's Headmaster," Jaune corrected his sister amiably, reaching over behind his seat and tussling her hair, "and I'm pretty sure he'll _beg_ to have you at Beacon after he sees what you can do!"

"You really think so?" she asked with an incredibly adorable grin.

"Mhm," was the stoic's brief response before he closed his eyes and let his head fall back to his seat, fast asleep.

Nora smirked at her sleeping partner, "I guess Mister Sleepyhead went to sleep early again!~ We should probably get some sleep too..." And without another word, she then passed out on her partner's shoulder, mouth hanging open slightly as soft snores escaped from the incredibly fast sleeper.

With a light chuckle much similar to her brother's, May then got up and sat next to Jaune, letting her head rest on one shoulder while Pyrrha rested on his other one. Each were asleep within minutes.

'Wow, May's as heavy as a rock!' Jaune couldn't help mentally commenting as his sister went deadweight on his shoulder. For such a small girl, she felt even heavier on him than his armored partner.

But taking his opportunity of solitude, the knight reached into his hoodie and pulled out the little black book.

'Still blank...' he mentally lamented as he flipped through the white pages.

However, catching a corner of a leaf of paper behind the front cover as he flipped the pages backwards, he realized that a page had been sticking to the cover the whole time.

"Hmm..." he couldn't help humming aloud as he pulled apart the sheet from the cover. On it were only two faintly-written lines.

_With pages unfurled and strokes unseen,  
__The ink of an Arc will words redeem._

'What _is_ it with all these riddles?' the knight thought with a tinge of frustration.

Putting the book down on his lap, Jaune looked up at the roof of the cabin, muttering conclusions under his breath.

"The book's open... but there's nothing there... the writing's invisible... and only an Arc can read it..."

Taking a moment to consider the second line, he closed his eyes and continued his train of thought... what kind of ink could only an Arc use?

The answer came quickly. With a sly smirk, Jaune opened his eyes and grabbed the open book with both hands. Letting his aura flow steadily into the pages, Jaune grinned as he saw words appear along with diagrams and images.

'Well _that_ wasn't too hard...'

He began reading as the ship flew on, learning about the nature and creation of his family's aura pool, and training techniques to help augment and control his high amounts of aura. The white knight's attention became even more riveted to the little black book as the chapters moved on from Aura and Dust to dark energy and aura manipulation.

He glanced over a few of them, but remembering his promise chose to overlook those chapters, finally reaching the last chapter in the book.

"Sacred Instruments... weird name..."

Looking over the chapter, Jaune's eyes widened as he saw a large variety of weapons and tools constructed from dark energy, each with enough power to tear open dark wormholes in space. One particular weapon caught his eye since it reminded him of Myrtenaster: a long-bladed red katana with a specialized dust cartridge.

'That's a _lot_ more dust chambers than Weiss' rapier...' he mentally noted with some alarm as he regarded the rainbow-like spectrum of different dust types it held. Only one word was written on that page.

_Zannah_.

"Hmm..." he mused at the strange word, but turned to the last two pages only to see that they were a strange hue of grey... and blank. Even when he tried infusing more aura into the book, nothing changed, much to the white knight's dismay.

Giving it one more shot, he pushed so much aura into the book that he began feeling light-headed. But just before he was about to pass out from exertion, only one word half-formed on the page.

'Tensenken?' Jaune thought to himself before the word wispily disappeared.

Surely he hadn't used his whole aura reserve on the book, but the amount he had used in so little time took its tool on him.

"I'll have to read up on those aura control chapters when I get the chance..." he mumbled to himself before finally drifting off to sleep.

* * *

"Wake up, lazy bud!"

Jaune woke with a start, eyes shooting open to a giggling orange-haired Nora as she began to sing.

"It's mor-ning!~ it's mor-ning!~ it's mor-ning!~ iiit's MORNING!~"

"Noraaa..." Jaune and Ren each replied, each now getting up with a groan as the students gathered around the center isle in their respective rows.

'_Good morning, passengers!_' the ever-enthusiastic voice of ADA rang out in the cabin, '_I'm pleased to inform you that my self-reparation process is now complete, and that we'll be arriving in Vale momentarily!_'

"Mmm, that's some good news..." Velvet mumbled as she wiped the sleep from her eyes.

_Buzz. Buzz._

Jaune looked down at his scroll, both brows shooting up as he saw the contact info.

"It's Doc!"

The group of students surrounded the white knight as he picked up the line and set the scroll to speaker mode.

"Hello, Doc?"

'_Hi there, Mister Arc!_' the merry voice rang through the line, '_I've got some GREAT news for you all - Mister Rosfield is beginning to regain consciousness!_'

Yang now pushed her way excitedly next to Jaune, snatching the scroll out of his hands.

"Is he awake? Can we talk to him?"

'_Sure! Let me walk over to him...'_ The sound of footsteps and a door swinging open rang out of the electronic device in the midst of the growing excitement in the cabin, '_H__ere he is, I think he's about to open his eyes now! Great timing!_'

Yang and Ruby traded elated grins in anticipation as the medic continued.

'_Heeey there, Davin! How are yo-?_'

The line suddenly went silent, the steady dial tone now filling the cabin with its monotonous note.

"Whoa, what happened?" the brawler asked with evident frustration, "Did the call drop?"

Jaune took the scroll and checked the screen as Beacon came into view of the ship, "I dunno, I'm not getting the 'Low Signal' message..."

"Uh... guys?"

The students all turned to the younger Arc and the subject of her attention outside the cabin window, and every expression suddenly turned to one of despair.

An explosion had occurred in one of the main spires of the Academy, and the tower was now leaking plumes of black smoke.

"Please don't tell me that's the medical bay..." Blake stated with evident alarm.

Neptune now turned towards the cockpit, "ADA!"

'_Yes, Mister Vasilias?_'

"You need to get us into that Academy on the _pronto!_"

'_But that would violate my standard landing protoco_-'

"NOW!" the flaming Yang shouted, her irises now red.

'..._erm, yes, of course, Miss Xiao Long._'

The airship now turned directly towards the school, and in about a minute, the passengers had arrived and were sprinting towards the infirmary. They found a coughing Viktor evacuating with the rest of the medical personnel from the main infirmary exit. Sun ran up to him first.

"Hey Ylvis, what happened?"

Strongly clearing his throat, the fox-faunus coughed out an answer, "I-I don't know! Big explosion tore through the infirmary near my room *cough cough* the smoke made it too hard to see what happened!"

Jaune looked to the boy as Sun let his fellow Faunus evacuate.

"You're up, Seul!"

"On it."

Moving into the smoke-filled area, the boy compressed a single pocket of air into Gretel and unleashed a powerful blast into the medical bay, forcing all the smoke out of the gaping hole in the side of the tower.

The students quickly found the source, a busted dust-powered furnace meant to heat the rooms at the hallway near Davin's room. Ruby looked over at her snowy-haired partner as the group ran deeper into the infirmary.

"Weiss, put out the fire!"

The heiress didn't even have to slow down. Having recharged her dust cartridges in ADA's weapon locker, putting out the fire was as easy as an ice-powered flick of her rapier.

Finally reaching Davin's room, Jaune and Yang were the first to see that it was where the gigantic hole had been made. We walked up to the side of what used to be an infirmary bed, only to see Starkillers on the floor.

"Oh no..." the knight lamented before noticing movement in a nearby wall, "Ohmygosh! Velvet, there's someone in the wall!"

Jaune picked up the energy-saber and hooked the weapon on his belt as Neptune and Sun ran over to the medic, judging by his purple scrubs, while Velvet readied her healing gloves.

As the two teammates pulled out the coughing medic out of the wall, Neptune glanced at Sun.

"With an explosion like this, I'm surprised this guy even _survived!_"

Looking up at him, the medic surprisingly responded with relieved enthusiasm, "Well I was lucky to have powered my semblance at the last second! Otherwise I'd _definitely_ be a goner!"

"Semblance?" Blake remarked.

With a brief moment of concentration, the medic was now covered in purple body armor. Sun, Neptune and all of team JNPR narrowed their eyes at the armor's familiarity, Sun now being the first to speak up.

"Heeey, that's a Mark Six helmet!"

"Uhh... Doctor DuFresne?" Neptune asked with a raised eyebrow.

"_Medic_..." the purple-themed survivor stated as his armor retreated with the deactivation of his semblance, "And if you're wondering about my armor, it's a looong story! It all started in a canyon named Blood Gulch-"

"Save it for later," Ruby cut in quickly, "What happened?"

"Well," the medic began as he stood up with great difficulty, "I was right here talking to you all on the scroll before Mister Rosfield woke up and went all _kinds_ of crazy!"

"What do you mean?" Jaune asked impatiently.

"He got up with a blast of aura and was clutching at his head like it was about to _explode_, before realizing his burst of energy had destabilized the furnace! He then threw me into a wall and literally _crashed_ through the side of the building just as the furnace blew up!"

Yang desperately turned to the blonde leader, "That means he can't be too far from here!"

"But Yang..." Jaune was beginning to recall his father's words when-

_Boom_.

A distant blast called the attention of the students to the Beacon Tower.

"Over there!" Yang called out before rushing out the room with her team. Jaune looked over at the rest.

"Velvet, you should stay here and take care of Doc..." And looking at his sister with concern for what may be waiting for them, added, "May, you should stay with her, too."

"But _brother_..." she began adorably with disappointment, to which the white knight held out his hand in admonition.

"Don't."

May pouted, "You sound just like _dad_...*_sigh_* okay, I'll stay."

With a nod of his head, the rest of the students sped out of the infirmary as well.

* * *

Within a minute, the group found Team RWBY near the main spire with Miss Goodwitch, a worried look on her face as the students brought her up to speed as quickly as they could. Blake heard the group approaching first.

"There they are!"

The Huntress glanced at the group, taking only a moment longer to register the new additions.

"Very well," she began promptly, "there is no time to lose, that last explosion came from the Gear Room under the Beacon."

Without another word, the caped woman sped towards the elevator, the rest of the students following closely. But still, with greater speed, the platinum blonde teacher easily outstripped the students and had already hit the down button with a well-timed ice flick from her riding crop before even reaching the halfway point, a skilled shot that everyone noticed. They were now relieved that this time, they at least were in the company of a trained Huntress.

However, as they arrived to the elevator, Blake's cat-ears twitched at something.

"Hey," the catgirl asked her team suspiciously, "Did anybody hear that?"

"Hear what?" Weiss replied impatiently as she watched the elevator indicator swiftly reaching 1.

"Sounded like... a chainsaw."

_Ding_.

"No time to guess!" Ruby called out as she and Glynda ushered the group into the large elevator, "We need to get up to that room!"

As the elevator swiftly took the group to the top floor, the lights faltered as booming crunches with increasing volume periodically resounded above them.

"That doesn't sound good..." Ruby muttered to no one in particular as the students readied their weapons.

The crimsonette had remembered the first time she was called up to that room. It was Ozpin's office away from his office, a spacious conference room that had a desk and even walls covered in glass, all covering an intricate network of gears which powered the clock tower and Beacon light.

But when the elevator stopped, so did the crunching sounds. And when the doors opened, the students gaped at the room which seemed to have stopped working.

Nearly every wall was cracked and broken, most of the intricate gears now immobile in signs of an obvious struggle. But the students now realized in horror that by the corner of the room next to a large wide window to the entire academy, a silver-haired man seemingly hovered against the wall clutching at his throat in midair, his cane on the floor just out of reach...

And a disheveled young man telekinetically doing the choking.

The young man's face was turned away from the group as he seemed more focused on growling something at the Headmaster while a steady flow of dark aura between them weakened the man further every second.

"..._You knew. You always knew! Because you were THERE!_" The agitated growls came out between breaths as the Professor saw the young man's eyes glaze over from black orbs to an eerie glow of red, his voice now sounding as if it weren't his own, "_NO MATTER. GOODBYE, OLD MAN..._"

"STOP!" Glynda now shouted at the dark assailant as she sent a hail of jagged dust crystals coursing through the room.

It impacted the entire area with so much force that it blew a large hole in the giant pane of glass next to young man, but its more accurate projectiles only rebounded against what looked like a dark aura force field surrounding him.

But it was enough to get his attention, as he dropped his hold on the coughing Professor. Ruby called out to her team as she sped over in a flurry of rose petals and recovered Ozpin and his weapon in the blink of an eye.

"Checkmate!"

Blake and Weiss slowly approached the heaving young man, but stopped short in fear when he turned around. With a pale face and savage scowl, Davin glared at the partners with the glowing red eyes and the low, wide stance of a Beowulf, his breathing haggard and barbaric.

"V-Vin," Blake began with Gambol Shroud drawn as he slowly walked sideways across the window in front of them, as if circling in for the kill, "We don't want to hurt you..."

"Clearly, you're not doing so well," Weiss joined in cautiously as well, "We simply wish to help..."

Glynda rushed to her colleague as he recovered, aiding him with a green healing remedy cast from her weapon.

"What happened?" she asked him quickly.

"He came up the elevator, I let him in thinking all was well... how could I have been so foolish?" the Headmaster responded sadly, "He took me by surprise, his attacks have become so _powerful_..."

Her vivid green eyes widened behind her glasses, "Is he-!?"

"I don't know," Ozpin stated, taking as much of the healing remedy he could get as they watched the young man standing off with the two girls.

"Davin," Blake continued with a reluctant finality, "If you don't stand down, we're going to have to _make_ you... so we can figure this out together, alright?"

The catgirl held her weapon in attacking position.

"I'm going to count to three. _One_... _Tw_-"

_Shinnng!_

With a flurry of yellow dust, Weiss jumped the gun with blinding speed at the young man. But easily ducking away from her lunge, he silently dodged every calculated thrust, slash and feint that followed with a hand behind his back, his free hand glowing black as it telekinetically ensured that not a single strike from Myrtenaster could so much as touch him.

With an angry grunt, Weiss quickly activated her dust cartridges, blue glyphs surrounding Davin as the heiress now defied gravity by slashing at him across every angle with dashes through the air all around him. But with spins and ducks, not a single attack made contact on the young man, who grabbed Weiss at the end of her final dash and sent her tumbling back next to Blake with an aura-powered punch.

"I'm sorry, Vin..." the cat-faunus softly told herself as she and Weiss now rushed him in unison.

Now with both arms out, he took on the slashing girls from each side, maneuvering himself around their blade-strikes with an amused grimace as he would use his forearms to push his incoming attackers off-balance or a well-placed touch with his hand against theirs to veer their weapons off course against each other. And then splitting a one-two dashing punch combo between his opponents, the young man sent each girl flying into opposite walls.

But as soon as he had done so, he barely had time to dodge a sudden semblance-powered air slash from the boy which sent a hairline crack through the entire window. However, the attack proved to be a feint as Davin was now inundated by a steady flow of coldly calculated chokuto-slices which left his purple plaid shirt tattered.

"Your only warning," Seul stated, glaring at him menacingly as Neptune and Sun joined him on either side. The sickly young man growled as he tore off the remains of his shirt.

Quickly sizing up his opponents, Davin seemingly anticipated Sun's incoming staff-strike as everything around him went slo-mo and ducked back while stopping it with his hand, redirecting Sun's aura back through the staff which made its natural shockwave-on-contact feature backfire on the Monkey-faunus' end, stunning Sun for just long enough to redirect Seul's incoming open umbrella with a flick of his palm towards the faunus and launching Sun into the wall with the misfired blast of air.

And in the same motion, Davin then lashed out a throat strike at the boy with his other arm before spinning around and grabbing Neptune by both shoulders, the blue-haired student's weapon totally ineffective as the young man literally flung _him_ against Seul, landing both opponents into yet another glass wall and leaving the young man with the burgundy jacket in his hands.

He flung it around his shoulders and put it on with a twisted grin before looking up and seeing both sisters now facing him.

"Vin... what have you _done?_" Yang asked him in incredulous bewilderment.

Blinking once, he paused for what only seemed like a moment before crouching down again with a growl, only taking a single threatening step towards Yang before being attacked by Ruby. But with supercharged reflexes, Davin was now dodging Ruby's speeding semblance attacks with dashes of his own around the room, leaving behind what looked like forks of black electricity.

"Stop moving so fast and let us help you!" Ruby yelled in frustration as he impossibly dodged every advance.

Finally having had enough, he stopped mid-dash and grabbed Crescent Rose above Ruby's hands, merely pushing the flailing crimsonette back as he hijacked her weapon.

Yang had simply stood there, wanting to believe that the young man she loved was still in there, but after what he did to her little sister, she launched herself at him with a pained yell and fully loaded gauntlets.

"YAAAH!"

In the face of her brutal attacks, the young man nimbly twirled the scythe around himself to deflect every one of Yang's gauntlet-powered punches with the blunt side of the blade, but was still being pushed back by the brawler's powerful technique. It wasn't until she had backed him up close to the window when she finally broke through and connected a solid hook to the face.

_WHAM!_

Davin didn't even reel backwards. The hit only turned his head, and slowly turning it back to face her like some kind of Terminator, he knocked out her breath with a sudden weakening pulse of his aura.

As she staggered back, Glynda saw the young man twirl the deadly blade over his head and swing it at the brawler when he suddenly stopped the blade within an inch of her face. And in that millisecond of time, the Huntress thought she saw his eyes revert to black before turning red just as quick and force-pushing Yang all the way across the room into the far wall instead, right in time to face all of Team JNPR.

The final bit was rather short-lived, however, as Davin caught Magnihild's first grenade in mid-air and flung it back at the team, knocking the three members back into more gears in the walls. Jaune, though, had activated his aura and had absorbed the force of impact. The knight was now about to re-engage along with Miss Goodwitch when a cane suddenly held them both back.

"No. I shall risk no further lives on this. This ends _now_."

Walking forward, Ozpin now approached Davin, this time at high alert. The young man merely spun Crescent Rose twice on his dominant left arm, the entire weapon turning black as he now held it backwards in a reverse grip, the lustrous black blade to the floor and facing away from his opponent.

Within another second, the Headmaster was already on him, cane clashing against twirling scythe with so much speed and ferocity that the young man had no opportunity to counter with any other type of attack. As Davin was now pushed back again, he now used the scythe's sniper rounds to spin himself above and around the Headmaster to get himself out of the corner, but was held back by a speedy cane-counter at every instance.

Finally getting an opportunity, Ozpin launched a single aura-dagger out of the end of his cane which grazed the young man's shoulder through his already damaged armor, eliciting a pained roar. But with that split second, the Professor's form began to blur with speed as blow after blow began to connect with Davin's body, finally sending the downed young man skidding to the edge of the large hole in the window.

"Stop him!" Jaune called out before the young man could recover and escape.

The young man tried to get up but was suddenly fastened in place by an aura-net fired from the end of the powerful cane, his head now hanging out the side of the large window dozens of floors in the air. Ozpin walked up to him, his cane sprouting a blade that turned it into a deadly spear as he now held it to Davin's neck.

"Forgive me, Davin," the Professor stated as he looked down at the struggling young man who uselessly snapped his jaws animalistically at the Headmaster, "But for the safety of Remnant, it must be done."

The Professor lifted the spear to deliver the killing strike.

_**TO BE CONTINUED...**_

* * *

_**The Valean War  
**__TPS (c) 2014_


	39. Vol 1-37: The Betrayal, Pt 2

_**The Betrayal, Pt. 2  
**__-XXXVII-_

* * *

Lifting his spear, Ozpin was about to deliver the finishing blow when suddenly-

_VROOOM-CRASH!_

The glass above the silver-haired man shattered as a large rumbling chainsaw deflected the spear at the last possible second, also cutting Davin free of his bonds.

Davin barely had time to mentally recall the corrupted scythe to his hand before his tattooed savior clashed again against the Headmaster. The students gaped at the White Fang leader who sure enough still seemed to be alive and literally kicking - and slashing - before Ozpin suddenly unleashed a huge aura blast, sending both attackers out the window.

The Professor promptly followed the pair out the side of the tower as Davin grabbed the Faunus leader in mid-air and braced for impact in a nearby building with a cushioning blast of aura, the students now rushing to the edge of the window several stories up.

"That was Crudus! Impossible!" Seul called out in anger.

"We have to get down there _now!_" Jaune now called out before the entire group turned to the sound of a _ding_ from the elevator.

The doors opened to reveal two men, one with a large double-sided battle axe, and the other... with a thermos of black espresso.

"We heard the commotion!" the green-haired thermos-wielder stated quickly, "and came as fast as we could!"

He then turned to his panting companion.

"...at least, as fast as Peter's legs would allow."

The burly moustached man scoffed as he retorted with wounded pride, "Dear me! Hardly an equitable comparison when you've ingested a triple-shot blend of your caffeinated brew!"

"Well _this_," the former of the partners quickly replied with a noisy slurp of the last drops of coffee from his canteen, "is a triple-shot _problem_!"

"Oobleck, Port!" the Huntress shouted with no time to lose, "Headmaster Ozpin has engaged two assailants with unknown capacity or motive and have fallen to the Amphitheater. We must rendezvous with him as _soon_ as possible!"

"Not a problem, madam!"

"_Miss,_" the Huntress hissed with restrained ferocity.

"That's what I said!" Oobleck stated as he then zipped out the window, "Now _who's_ ready to fight for their lives!"

He remained hanging in mid-air to deliver a salute for a split-second before beginning to fall.

"Did he _seriously_ just do that," Ren remarked as they watched the history teacher fall through the clouds.

But to the student's surprise, the teacher's thermos extended in mid-air, Oobleck now using it as a stabilizing device as he discharged flame-blasts from its open end to direct him into the pre-made hole in the shorter building. Sun glared at his partner.

"How are _we_ gonna-"

_BAM!_

And with a loud bang, Nora was the next to follow with a propelling smash of her beloved hammer and maniacal laughter. Neptune returned Sun's glare.

"Does that answer your question?"

One by one, each student now launched themselves out the side of the Beacon tower.

Falling through the air, Ruby glanced at her falling teammates through the clouds as she descended horizontally, each student then speeding their descent by shifting their positions and descending vertically. Now flipping herself once or twice just before landing in front of the amphitheater with a crouch, the rest of the teams landed in rapid succession around the crimsonette with the same position.

Ren stood up after watching the entire sequence, mentally noting that not even Monty above in all his greatness could devise a greater moment if he ever decided to include such a falling animation in an opening sequence of a show about their lives...

'Wait a minute...' he suddenly thought to himself as a strange chill ran down his spine, but was distracted by the incoming teacher.

"Alright, students," the Huntress began sternly as she made her way to the side entrance of the amphitheater and main arena as loud explosions and rumbling could be heard inside, "Seeing the danger level of these opponents, Ozpin, Oobleck and I will engage while Port ensures your safety here outside."

"What will you _do_ to them?" Yang asked with evident concern for a certain antagonist.

Glynda turned to the pained brawler and tried to sound as reassuring as possible.

"We will try everything we can to... _subdue_ them." Then she disappeared into the entryway.

The students sheepishly remained where they were told, each still in shock about the recent developments which had overcome the team leader and friend.

Jaune, however, was far from letting himself get held back and advanced to the entry only to be stopped by an axe held in his way. He turned to see Professor Port and the end of the large melee weapon.

"Heed her warning," the teacher expressed firmly, "even heroism may at times prove an unnecessary risk."

Jaune's gaze hardened on the older man, "I have to see what's going on if I'll be able to help Davin. I need him to stay _alive_... and I'm not going to let anyone stop me from going in that arena."

It took a moment, but Port was the first one whose gaze broke, deeming it wiser that fighting be avoided outside the amphitheater as well as he lifted his hefty weapon from Jaune's path.

"Very well, young knight. Enter at your own peril."

Jaune turned to his worried peers and nodded once.

"If there's anyone who can handle him, it's _me_. I have to try." He then turned to his team and then his partner, "Don't follow me."

* * *

The halls in the amphitheater seemed normal enough, the items still looked the same, and walkways still seemed the same. It was as Jaune had always remembered it, from back when he was a new and defenseless newb all the way through the entrance of the inexplicably skilled one.

But this time, his aura warned him of a dangerous presence. He couldn't pin _how_ it was happening, but ever since he had manifested his aura, he could not just see, but _sense_ those around him, even when they were out of sight.

And running through the halls as he approached the main entrance to the arena, Jaune could sense Davin as well, just as he had in the forest, and it was helping him navigate the labyrinth of corridors surrounding the arena straight to the action... but this time, the presence was stronger and far more ominous.

"I just hope I'm not too late..."

Just then, a blast of glowing objects pummeled through the side wall of the arena into Jaune's path, Glynda's attack having missed its target.

Running in, the white knight unsheathed Crocea Mors and countered a revving chainsaw-strike at the teacher while she was deflecting Davin's sniper shots. With another slash and pulse of his shield, he and Miss Goodwitch stood back to back holding off Davin and Crudus while Ozpin and Oobleck tried overpowering them from their other sides.

"Not bad timing, Mister Arc..." the Huntress stated with a tinge of an impressed tone in her voice as she glanced sideways at the knight who was holding his own against a veteran faction leader.

"...If you survive, I _may_ consider sparing you a week of detention."

"_Thanks_."

Jaune received further reprieve when Oobleck found an opening into the Faunus' defense, unleashing a flurry of fireballs to the opponent who had to pay just a little too much attention on deflection which gave Jaune a chance to pulse out his aura as a large barrier at Crudus.

Knocked off balance, the White Fang leader could do nothing to prevent the incoming fiery thermos-strike from the speedy history teacher who swung his weapon like a club to send the Faunus into the wall.

"Wow, Mister Oobleck!" Jaune couldn't help commenting as the history teacher aimed the thermos-nozzle at the wall.

"Please, Mister Arc! _Doctor_ Oobleck! I didn't earn the PhD for fun, thank you very much!" the teacher quickly responded before sending another barrage of fireballs into the same wall for good measure.

Noticing the absence of his ally, Davin roared in fury as he mentally picked up every large dislodged boulder in the arena with two glowing black hands and launched them at the team in the center.

Now firing the corrupted Crescent Rose to gain even more speed, the young man engaged the Headmaster through the hail of stones, knocking him, Glynda, Oobleck and Jaune off-balance with rapid strikes from the scythe and speedy sniper shots at each of his opponents as he dashed between them.

Finally leaping back from the impending collisions, the young man grinned as the mass of boulders converged on his four opponents in a stony heap, giving enough time for the recovering dark faunus leader to step back into the arena.

Their grins turned to grimaces, however, as the rocks began to rumble, finally exploding outward with the force of Glynda's spell and Jaune's aura, making the entire building quake.

Both dark allies roared as they re-engaged their recovering opponents.

* * *

"Something's wrong..." Yang paced back and forth outside the amphitheater with evident frustration amid the other students before turning to the professor who guarded the side entrance, "We can't just _wait_ out here while they tear each other apart in there!"

"She's right," Ren stated as his worried team looked up with evident concern of their own, "There are two of our friends in there and _three_ of your own, Professor. The least we can do is get within view to know if we're needed."

"Which we most likely _are,_" Blake commented in addition to the stoic's point.

The axe-wielder shifted a little before answering, "It would still be too great a risk. Your own leader has even been disarmed and the other two are already engaged in heated battle within the amphitheater!"

Ruby now stomped over to the large man with an angry pout, not even reaching his shoulder height as she got right in front of him to begin poking his chest with every phrase as she made her point.

"_I_. Will get. My weapon. _We_. Are going. Inside!"

The man's moustache twitched. He was about to say something when the entire building shook and rumbled from an explosion as if a ton of dynamite had gone off in the center, finally drawing out his concern.

"Thundering typhoons!" he cried out in surprise, "Very well, children, follow me!"

The group rushed into the entryway as the building continued shaking.

Inside, Oobleck and Jaune held back a savage Crudus while Ozpin and Glynda held back Davin's furious attacks. Infused with the ancient energy, the strength and durability of each dark ally had drastically increased, and in the young man's case, it was only making him stronger by the minute.

"I'm not so sure we can stick to our current train of action of holding ourselves back against these foes!" the green-haired professor shouted to his colleagues above the fighting as he stuck to his train metaphor, "The way I see it, decouple the Caboose! It will kill us all!"

And suddenly, with an impossibly strong chainsaw strike against Crocea Mors, Jaune's shield reared back for just long enough for Crudus to lash out with his arm.

"_Come 'ere, tough guy!_"

And taking Jaune's head in his large hand which now looked more like a Grimm's claw, the Faunus threw him head-first into the pile of rubble beside him, knocking the knight unconscious.

"JAUNE!"

Glynda called out in her anger, her riding crop now glowing with her aura's fury as she used it to throw the dark faunus into every wall, then launching the weakened opponent into the air and letting him fall towards the waiting thermos-wielder.

"Ah!" Oobleck began quickly at the descending victim, readying his club-like flame-throwing missile launcher, "I see you'd like another taste of Sir Michael Bay, hmm? I believe that leaves me but one option!"

With a small flame lighting up at the end of Bay, Oobleck swung the bat-like weapon at the falling faunus, lighting Crudus on fire as the blow sent him flying through several piles of rubble and into the side of the arena, causing the entire inner arena wall to explode in an enormous ball of flame and come down on the chainsaw-wielder.

Regrouping, the three professors now faced a particularly peeved young man, whose black aura had now begun to cascade around him.

"This comes as your final warning," Ozpin stated as the foursome paused in a stand off, "This is the part you must stop and ask yourself who you _really_ are, Davin."

The young man merely chuckled with uncharacteristic cruelty.

"_Hehe... in that case, you may want to call me the Grim Reaper._"

"Then tell me..." the Headmaster now asked with a growing scowl, "What is it that you aim to _reap?_"

The Arena grew silent for a single tense moment.

Dashing at Oobleck in the blink of an eye, the professors had virtually no time to react as Davin quickly twirled the corrupted scythe forward, knocking the history teacher off balance with the butt of the scythe handle onto his own flame-thrower which the young man then discharged in a flash of fire, launching Oobleck into the upper rafters of the Amphitheater.

Within the same second, he stretched out his scythe-wielding arm and spun the weapon with such speed and precision that he got the tip of the scythe blade to knock off Miss Goodwitch's glasses, causing her to hesitate just long enough to spin around to her front with Michael Bay in his other arm and blasting her away at point-blank range with the missle launcher, letting the recoil push him several feet back from the shocked Headmaster.

Furthering the Professor's surprise and anger, the young man then emphatically threw down both weapons like useless play-things as he answered his question.

"_Power!_" Davin shouted as thick black aura quickly condensed around both arms, his voice now changing again.

"_UNLIMITED POWEEER!"_

_ZzZZZzzzzzrak!_

Two bolts of black electricity erupted at Ozpin from Davin's hands, pushing the silver-haired man back several feet as the energy clashed against his upheld cane. By the time Davin stopped, the cane had become too overheated to hold and the Headmaster had to toss it to the side.

However, recalling the unique ability and piecing together the final pieces of memory in his head, it was now Ozpin who looked up at the young man in realization as Jaune slowly began waking nearby.

"You're not _it_. Not _him. _If you were, even _you_ would've run out of aura by now... you really are but a boy!"

"_WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!_" the young man replied furiously.

The Headmaster let the smallest of grins creep across his face.

"You are neither the man nor the beast, Davin... and unlike the man, you've learned much, but apparently not _everything_."

_ZzzzZZzzzZZrak!_

Two more bolts coursed through the air at Ozpin, but this time, the Professor caught both bolts of electricity with shimmering pockets of aura in front of each of his outstretched hands without taking a bit of damage, only spurring Davin's anger and power.

"...Whoever you are, you can fight it! Do _not_ let the Grimm control you!"

That was all Jaune could now see Ozpin manage to say before the young man practically teleported at the Headmaster in a flash of black electricity, successfully punching the Professor across the room into the wall.

Davin was facing away from the knight as he contemplated his deed, Jaune now standing several feet behind the young man. Suddenly straightening up, the dark fighter quickly turned at the knight with a twisted grin, readying himself for another fight.

"_Looks like it's just you and me_..."

Shaking his head sadly, Jaune responded in dismay as he unsheathed Crocea Mors.

"You really don't remember who I am, do you Vin."

There was no response, only the powerful bolt of electricity at the knight's chest that sent Jaune flying back several feet and landing on his back. As tendrils of black electricity still coursed around him as he got up, he felt his arms and legs feel heavy like lead all over again.

'I _seriously_ need to figure out how to counter that!' he thought to himself angrily before recalling the events at Ozpin's office so long ago.

Davin had nearly killed everyone inside at the manifestation of his semblance, but Jaune had remained unharmed by shielding himself with pure aura. As Davin repeated his electric attack, the knight held out his sword, which fortunately enough didn't overheat despite the massive amounts of energy being cast at it.

Taking the opportunity, Jaune let his aura flow out and around him like he had read in little black book, quickly re-energizing himself to an even stronger state than before as his eyes began to blaze white.

The white knight now realized that his energy and the young man's energy were likely toxic to each other, their only real weaknesses. And all this time their bodies and minds were merely trying to heal from exposure to each other's energies, the dreams and memories from the Trace only byproducts of the healing process.

And with his mind and body now running on all eight cylinders, the white knight also recalled a certain ace he still had up his sleeve.

"Thank you, _May!_"

Holding his blade up with his left arm as it continued absorbing the dark energy attack, Jaune hooked his collapsed shield on his belt and cast out blinding white bolts of electricity from his right hand at the young man who barely managed to dodge it.

"C'mon, Vin!" the knight called out in a final desperate attempt to bring the young man back around to his senses, "I know you're still in there somewhere, you _have_ to fight it!"

With a furious animalistic roar, Davin now dashed all around the white knight sending black forks of dark energy though every opening he could find, but the attacks were now countered at every instance with blade strikes and defensive aura-projections at every angle from the knight who was now matching the young man's incredible speed.

Now stopping mid-dash across the arena, the young man now began charging a large attack to end his opponent. Jaune knew he had little time to emulate Davin, so he sheathed his sword and pulled both hands back, charging an electric attack of his own. Releasing their two-handed strikes, both fighters each unleashed a single massive bolt of energy which met in the middle of the arena with a thundering crackle.

Black and white electricity crashing into each other in mid air, each opponent pushed more and more energy into the blast to overpower the other before hearing something just outside the arena.

"Come children, the main entrance is just this way!"

Both Jaune and Davin stopped their attacks to turn towards the voice, but it was already too late. Their clashing arcs of power had created a large energy flux in the center of the arena over their heads, a white pulsing globe of opaque energy surrounding an unstable cloudy black core.

_ZzzztzztzzztZZtzzzzzzt_...

Jaune turned back at the anomaly which was now releasing its own bolts of electricity around the arena when he realized nothing good was about to come of this as the unstable energy flux suddenly collapsed into itself into a single point of light.

"Oh-"

-_OOOOOM!_

With a flash of light and flames, the anomaly viciously exploded outwards with lateral concentric rings of light and dark energy which broke right through every wall in the amphitheater, each fighter falling back with the sheer force of the blast.

But before the wall of blazing energy could overtake the knight, he was scooped up by a speeding Doctor Oobleck as the green-haired teacher grabbed his extended thermos and Crescent Rose as well, the two joining the recovering Ozpin, Glynda and the rest of the students outside the arena. The group evacuated the amphitheater right on time, exiting from the side entrance just as the entire building collapsed.

* * *

"Thank dust this didn't take place during normal school hours," Miss Goodwitch remarked a few minutes later as the group recovered outside of the demolished amphitheater, inflicted mostly with minor cuts and bruises, "otherwise, I fear we may have had a much more tragic turn of events with the fall of the amphitheater."

"Unfortunately," Oobleck retorted as he finished dusting off his weapon, glancing at the rest of the group, "I'm afraid these events haven't quite come to a close yet. I saw two figures escaping on the other end of the arena, no need to guess _whom_ they may be."

He wasn't the only one who knew. The White Knight also knew that the two dark allies were still alive, all it took was one breath and a moment of concentration to sense their dark aura signatures retreating into the forest.

Several yards away, the students surrounded the seated Jaune, waiting expectantly while Pyrrha tended to his quickly-healing wounds before bombarding him with questions. Ozpin and Port approached the other two Professors after ensuring that Jaune was indeed healthy. At the very least, that small piece of good news served to lighten the mood of what could've been a _very_ bad day. Everyone was still _alive_.

"Quite a tussle took place, I'm sure..." the loud Axe-wielder stated as the four adults gathered.

"Yes, I'm afraid so," the Headmaster replied dejectedly as he looked over the massive ruins, "I doubt that even _this_ mess can be fixed without extensive delay."

He then turned to the Huntress with a slightly raised eyebrow, "Unless..."

Glynda crossed her arms with mock offense.

"Of _course_. Have faith, this one shouldn't take too long," she replied before shrugging, "a few hours at most."

"_Hours?_" the silver-haired man repeated with just a tinge of amusement, "Hmm... you're slipping."

The Huntress forced a tight smile as her partner and colleagues fought back grins of amusement, knowing that she was about to say a lie that only the Headmaster could catch.

"...Middle age, Ozpin dear. Comes to us all."

Now unable to hold back a small smile in the face of her little fib, Ozpin righted himself with both hands on his cane as customary, resuming his usual professionally stoic air.

"Indeed it does."

The teachers then turned to see two girls approaching the group of students, the healer and a girl that though they had never seen before who struck an odd resemblance to the pained knight on the ground whom she suddenly hugged with all her might.

Noticing his state, she released herself and began seemingly questioning him with adorably righteous indignation in regards to his assailant, at which the rest of the students joined in with several questions of their own.

Ozpin now glanced at the overwhelmed knight and steadily exhaled as he gauged everything he had just witnessed that day.

"Mister Arc knows more than he lets on... we will not have much time to respond to this new threat, but I believe he may be the key to preventing the destruction of Vale."

* * *

Several yards away, Jaune still hadn't heard the end of the barrage of questions coming in from every direction.

"What happened? How'd Crudus survive? Where are they now? Did you fight with the professors? Were they hurt? Were you hurt? Is that _blood? _What was that explosion? Why'd the building come down?..."

Off to the side, however, Yang approached Ruby as the crimsonette sat cross-legged facing away from the group towards the demolished building, hunched over with a depressed air over her weapon which had finally reverted to its original color. The brawler spoke up before reaching her sister's side.

"I'm sorry about Crescent Rose... I know you must feel terrible. Me too."

The red leader wiped away a tear as her sister also sat cross-legged next to her.

"I just don't get it, Yang," she began mournfully, "he _knew_ how close I was to Crescent Rose! And he used it against me! And against my _friends_..." Her voice began to break as it choked up on the knot in her throat, "against _his_ friends..."

Yang put her arm consolingly around her little sister, fighting back her own feelings so she could be strong for Ruby.

"Against _our_ friends, Rubes..."

"...I know..." the crimsonette replied with a sniffle, wiping at her nose as she continued, "But why did he do this? What's wrong with him?"

The same nagging memory crept back into Yang's head, the same one from two nights ago on the airship, but this time it came back a little stronger. It was when Ozpin was telling the four students about the original Grimm commander.

"I don't know, Ruby," Yang began with steeled resolution as she got up, picking up her little sister as well so each of them could approach the still-recovering seated knight, "But we're going to find out. _Soon_."

Walking over to Jaune, the sisters merely stood there until the steady heat from Yang's aura caught the students' attention, prompting them to quiet down and let her speak up.

"_Jaune_." Yang began with a red-iris gaze, "What. Happened. In there."

The despairing look she received in response, however, was enough to cut down her bravado, the words which followed hitting home in the worst way she could've imagined.

"They're alive. Both Crudus and Davin, and they escaped..." Jaune looked down as he swallowed the knot in his own throat, unable to face his interrogator directly as he finished.

"...But we've lost him, Yang. We've lost Vin."

* * *

_**The Valean War  
**__TPS (c) 2014_


	40. Vol 1-38: Finding North

_**Finding North  
**__-XXXVIII-_

* * *

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Absolutely _positive?_"

"Yes."

The Headmaster uncharacteristically sunk his face in both hands at Jaune's firm responses, rubbing the tiredness out of his eyes behind his spectacles as five teenagers stood in front of him in his office. Sitting at his desk with Glynda standing beside him, Ozpin was trying to make sense out of the students' debriefing of the events before and during the attack at Dorme and what the implications entailed.

He had just finished his fifth cup of coffee that morning, an hour or so having passed since the earlier confrontation. Coffee always gave him that edge he was so known for, and the Headmaster was still wondering if the morning's outcome would've been different had he been at his sharpest.

"Very well, then."

He now glanced at Jaune and Ruby, the team leaders. Then to Sun, the acting team leader for team VNDS. And then he sized up the two new additions, the boy and the girl who had come to aid the Beacon students in their endeavors.

Ozpin spoke to the last two of the group.

"And can any of you two corroborate Mister Arc's account of events?"

The boy responded.

"I can, sir. I was with Ruby's team. We provided Jaune with air and ground support after the encounter with the unknown Grimm."

"Unknown Grimm?" the perplexed Huntress echoed.

"Yes," the boy answered shortly, "unlike any I or likely any of us have ever faced."

The Headmaster slightly narrowed his eyes, "Describe it."

Seul faltered, "Umm, I don't have much of a way with words..."

"Then _find_ one," Miss Goodwitch replied gruffly, "And paint us a picture with them."

The boy shifted his weight a bit as he looked down at the floor, placing both hands on the hilt of Hansel and Gretel in front of him and leaning forward as he meekly began his attempt at a description.

"Umm... it was tall. Black fur. Bulky, very bulky. White facemask with red runes. Uh, lots of body armor..."

Impatient with the boy's quiet responses, Glynda cut in, expanding her question to the students.

"Are you sure it wasn't just another Ursa Rex? It's entirely plausible."

Even though he didn't speak much, Seul _certainly_ didn't like being interrupted. He spoke up again with greater volume before any of his peers could respond.

"_No_. It _stood_ like a man, _looked_ like a man, and _moved_ like a man. Never seen or even heard of anything like it."

The two adults briefly traded a look of concern, Glynda silently mouthing something to her superior.

_That's impossible_.

But Ozpin turned back to the boy, "Continue."

At a loss for words, Seul finally seemed to recall a useful piece of information.

"...Oh, and it wielded twin black-bladed katanas."

All features of emotion or expression suddenly disappeared from Ozpin's and Glynda's faces. Noticing the change, Ruby cocked her head at the strange reaction.

"You both know what this Grimm might be, don't you."

Ozpin took another sip of coffee before putting the mug down and letting out a long sigh, an internal debate coming to a close as he decided to let the group in on some little-known facts. At least a few of them.

"You are very correct, Miss Rose. Professor Goodwitch and I have reason to believe that Mister Rosfield may have fallen under the control of this Grimm..."

"You mean he's begun the _Turning,_" Jaune cut in, his interjection more of a statement than a question.

"To be precise, yes," Ozpin replied morosely, now looking up at the group in front of him with a new question.

"Did this Grimm... _say_ anything when you faced him?"

"What do you mean _say?_ Grimm can't talk," Sun spoke up dubiously.

Glynda responded first, "_Most_ Grimm can't talk. There are an incredibly rare few who are... different."

"Well this one didn't, not that we gave it - or him - much of a chance to, at least," Jaune stated, jumping back into the conversation, "But how much time do we have until Davin turns?"

Jaune swatted away what he thought he heard was a fly near his ear, he was suddenly hearing a strange ringing noise. But he was now looking directly at his Headmaster who seemed to think over the question, looking up as if recalling a memory.

"The total time varies depending on the victim... but the Turning usually consisted of entering a comatose state from anywhere between a few hours to a few days, followed by about twelve hours of aggressive behavior and incredibly augmented power after waking before the physical transformations began."

"_Physical_ transformations?" Ruby echoed with apprehension.

"Yes," the Professor replied before taking a sip of coffee, "after the mental breakdown is complete, the victim begins to transform into a Grimm hybrid, a grotesque mix between human - or faunus - and Grimm."

The pale-faced Arc sibling couldn't help speaking out at the new information, "That's _atrocious!_"

"It is," Glynda replied, "and in the Great War, the last time any of those Grimm were known to have walked Remnant, many people were lost to the control of said monsters."

"And you're saying that Vin has about twelve hours before he's lost, too?" Ruby asked.

"Yes, twelve hours seemed to be the usual amount of time. However, after waking, many victims were known to have retained a certain degree of reason, even recognition, of those around them. But by the time the physical transformations began, they were nothing but mindless killers bending to every whim of their dark masters. So in Mister Rosfield's case, there may still be time."

The students on the other side of the desk grasped onto the small beacon of hope that her last words gave. But to the faunus-boy, it also raised questions in his skeptic nature.

"Sooo..." Sun began, narrowing his eyes at both adults, "No disrespect, but _how_ is it that you both know these things? These aren't exactly fun facts from our history books... you know, the things where it would be, I dunno, _important_, for us to learn these facts from!?"

"_Is it?_" the Headmaster answered with unexpected intensity as he stood up, startling the monkey-Faunus, "Or would it only instill fear in the populace? Make it a ludicrous act for citizens to go out at night due to the stories of the dark unknown that survived the war? Cause widespread panic with the knowledge of intelligent Grimm who haven't been seen on Remnant for generations?"

The Headmaster glared at Sun, the others in the room feeling the same intensity as he continued.

"What's _important_ for us as Hunters is to protect Remnant, which includes protecting it from fear itself. We know not _how_ these creatures can exert these dark powers, we know not _why_ they only appear every few generations. But as the guardians of this planet, our aim is to keep the public _safe_ from these concerns which we are charged to bear in their place while we deal with said threats directly."

Jaune narrowed his eyes at the silver-haired man.

"That may be true... but we do know _something_. Don't we, Headmaster Ozpin," the knight stated pointedly, calling out the Professor on his half-truths. Sure, no one knew exactly how the Grimm leaders could do what they did, but Ozpin sure seemed to know their story pretty well...

"All we _know_, Mister Arc," Ozpin now glared at Jaune as if giving a subtle subliminal warning, "Is that these rare creatures seem to be attracted to certain individuals of remarkable _power_. We know not _why_."

Without missing a beat, the knight answered back.

"Then you guys would probably do well to let me elaborate."

Ozpin restrained himself from stopping Jaune right then and there with a swift smack from his cane. The Arc knew something, and at this point, saving the planet from dark destruction outweighed protecting it from widespread panic. He now focused on him as everyone's undivided attention now rested on the knight.

"You're right, sir, those Grimm _are_ searching for power, but not just any power...t hey want immortality. And they need one of those 'individuals of remarkable power' to do it."

"Wait... _what?_" Sun cried out incredulously.

The knight ascertained the Headmaster's intent as he noticed the silver-haired man grip the end of his cane just a little harder than usual.

"People _need_ to know, Professor. We may be responsible for protecting Remnant, but it doesn't mean we get to decide what people can and can't know. It's their _right_."

He then turned his attention to the room to respond to the Faunus-boy's question.

"Guys, there are people on Remnant - very few, actually - that are born with a weird aura... they're called the Unbalanced. There are only very few alive at a time and they're like opposites, like the light and dark side of all our auras. This unbalance makes them _really_ strong." The knight paused for a moment, but decided to add the last part anyway, "...And I'm one of them."

The students gaped at the knight and his sister looked at him in awe, another adorable trait of hers since she absolutely adored her older brother.

"Jaune! That's incredible! How long have you known? Does dad know?"

The knight winced a bit, as if it hurt him by revealing this part about him which he had kept secret for some time.

"A while now. And _yes_... dad knows."

Ozpin smirked internally, figuring the likely source of the knight's recent enlightenment. But May's expression now turned to one of fearful concern.

"Wait... but doesn't that mean the Grimm are looking for _you?_"

"No... not exactly," Jaune continued, "I'm not their target, I'm only still alive out of necessity." The Headmaster raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" Ruby asked in surprise.

"I _mean_, I'm not the one they want. It's the other one of the Unbalanced, the one with the same dark energy signature in his aura as the Grimm. They won't hesitate to come after me _after_ they have what they want."

"Okay, then who is the other one?" Seul asked apprehensively.

"Apparently, the Grimm already have him," Ozpin answered, eliciting a few gasps from the others as they realized who the identity of the Dark one of the Unbalanced was.

After a moment of thinking, the staff-wielder spoke up.

"So, my team leader turns out to be some sort of crazy-strong 'unbalanced' force of nature who's being hunted by the dark beings of Remnant," Sun began slowly with a touch of sarcastic amusement, "now that's a heck of a plot twist! ...But why are they hunting him?"

"Remember that 'immortality' bit from earlier?," Jaune continued with evident difficulty, "It's _that_. When they _turn_ someone, they're pretty much breaking down that person's aura into something the Grimm leaders can directly absorb... pure and mindless dark energy. It makes them live longer."

"Wait... what."

The students turned to look with some surprise at the Huntress who stood dumbfounded at the information that she apparently didn't know before. Her eyes had widened as if she were realizing something she had been trying to figure out for a very long time.

"That's right," Jaune stated, "When pure dark energy is artificially infused in someone, it makes them live longer. Not sure why, but it does. Now imagine if they got a hold of someone whose aura was practically _overflowing_ with dark energy? They would practically live forever!"

"I find it hard to believe that killer Grimm dudes would want to _share_ that kind of power..." Sun stated thoughtfully.

"And you're definitely not wrong! As I was... Uh... _learning_," the knight continued, not wanting to give out the source of his information tucked away in his hoodie, "Their leader was working on a weapon that could kill any other being like himself with a single stab - it's a sword, or a drill, I'm not sure - but the thing is, it could combine both light and dark energy to pierce through _anything_, even through the fabric of space!"

Jaune was getting more and more animated as he had explained his stories, gesturing every detail which only caused the Headmaster and Huntress to pale at the thought of what Vale had coming to it.

"Was such a weapon ever completed?" Ozpin asked, his coffee once more forgotten on the desk.

"I don't think so..." Jaune paused, "It required _both_ dark and light energy to forge, the second of which being something the creatures of Grimm really don't have direct access to. But my further research in the subject turned up... blank..."

"Might _we_ be able to forge one?" Ruby stated with a tinge of hope.

"Maybe. I can't be sure. Others were made like it, except only from dark energy, but still pretty strong. Though when it comes to _killing_ the other Grimm leaders, they're only about as effective as any other normal weapon... at least that's what it says in the notes-"

The knight stopped himself too late. His mistake having been made, the Headmaster was about to question him when suddenly Jaune, Ruby, Sun and Seul cried out in pain from a ringing sound in their ears.

'_Oi! Hello? Anyone hear me?_' the voice finally came through.

"Yes! We can hear you!" Seul cried out angrily.

"You really need to stop doing that, Cipher..." Jaune added.

Ozpin, Glynda, and to a lesser extent, May, glared in surprise at the others in the group. May quickly figured it out since the earpieces were how the cryptic and Gabriel were able to keep their relationship under wraps for so long.

'_I'm sure it wasn't that bad, mate!_' the voice retorted.

"Yes. It _was_," Ruby and Sun complained in unison.

'_Ah well, I doubted your transmitters would work anyway. Just got the broadcast tower back to full strength... ya can thank Cyn's old posse for that!_'

A distant clang could be heard through the line, '_Oi! Oi, Ed! Ya giant duff! I TOLD ya to be careful with that! And Edd! You're plastered AGAIN! C'mere, Edd... just come 'ere, don't worry. I'm not gonna hit ya, I'm not gonna hit ya_...'

The students winced as a loud _smack_ rang out through their earpieces.

'_WOT have I told ya about gettin' sloshed, eh? C'mon, man! No more of the drink for ya! You're better than that, yea? *sigh* Don't you worry, ol' chap, I'll make a well-chuffed bloke out of you yet!_' And with the faint reply of '_yes, boss_' through the line, the cryptic now seemed to be alone again, returning his attention to the students.

'_Now where was I... ah yes, transmitters-_'

"Wait," Jaune interrupted, "You have Cyn's crew _working_ for you? Where's Cyn?"

'_Dunno. Don't care. The wanker left Dorme after you did, mate. Anyways, I'm helpin' these blokes reach their potential and wotnot, and we've gotten all the transmitters workin again thanks to that. Another win for yer ol' pal, Cyrus Fergusson!_'

The earpieces screeched again with the activation of more lines.

'_Ack! So all this noise has been coming from YOU!?_'

"_Weiss?_" the four kids replied at once, Ozpin and Glynda now turning to trade confused glances.

'_Yes it's Weiss! And your squabbling is VERY taxing to my ears!_'

'_I agree, Weiss-sempai! Mine too!_' Velvet seconded, coming onto the line.

'_And you can imagine how much worse it is for myself_...' another new monotonous but still pained voice came through. Blake.

'_Whaddaya mean?_' Cipher responded before seemingly remembering the reason, '_O__h! That's right, it's cuz you're a Fa-_'

'_Quiet, Fergusson._' Ren.

'_Ren_...' Pyrrha's voice now came through in a placating tone.

'_No, Pyrrha, Ren is right._~' Nora dutifully defended, '_Y__ou have NO idea how hard it's been to make sure people don't know Blake's a Faunus!_'

Several facepalms resounded through the lines.

'..._sorry_.~'

'_Wait_...' a confused Neptune replied, '_Blake's a Faunus? Oh never mind, Sun told me._'

Blake scoffed with sarcasm, '_THANKS, Sun._'

"Sorry, Blakey."

Ozpin and Glynda raised an eyebrow at Sun's comment out of context, having missed the whole conversation. He looked back at them, pointing at his ear.

"Sorry, Professors... Uh, urgent call."

Another screech now rang through the earpieces.

'_Aren't you forgetting someone, Cipher dear? You're not the only one who deserves credit_...'

The cryptic seemed completely surprised, '_G-Gabriel? How?'_

'_Seriously? I helped you design the tech. You didn't think I'd figure out a way into the frequency?_'

A moment of silence passed.

'..._Amazing. Absolutely amazing. Never leave me alone, luv!_'

'_Never in a million years, Cy!_'

Jaune had now had enough.

"GUYS. Is there anything else you needed to tell me, cuz we're _kinda_ in the middle of something right now."

'_E__xtra mayo like you asked for, boss_,' the faint voice rang through Cipher's line before the cryptic responded.

'_Thanks, Ed! And oh yes, I do remember something else, Jaune. *munch munch* Not sure if that big black dot on the map of Vale you saw last time turned out to be anything important... but it's there again. A lot bigger, and lots more. *munch gulp* ah, delicious. Just inside the forest valley! Thought you should know_.'

The four peers in Ozpin's office now traded looks of alarm. Jaune spoke into his earpiece.

"Uh... Cipher, I think there's something _you_ should know..."

'_Oh, don't bother, mate! I've had this channel open for several minutes now! Got to hearin most of your convo, waffling on about Grimm and wotnot? I dunno, wasn't really payin attention_...'

"How much of it did you guys even _hear_ then?"

It was now the brawler who responded.

'_Everything after Ozpin started talking about the Turning_...'

Her nagging memory had finally cleared up when she suddenly had heard the conversation begin in her ears. Everyone else with the earpiece had heard as well. Davin was under the control of the Grimm leader.

She was now ready for a fight.

'..._so how do we get Vin back_.'

Jaune's expression hardened with resolve, "I'll get back to you on that, Yang. Cipher, keep the channel open."

'_Aye, mate._'

Jaune traded glances with Ruby, who nodded her head in agreement to whatever plan he might have before he turned to the Headmaster.

"Alright, Professor Ozpin, here's how it goes..."

* * *

Many miles away, Gabriel raced into Flynn Arcade. She was evidently peeved.

"Don't think I wasn't paying attention to the fact that you _hadn't_ been to the entire conversation they've been having at Beacon! Cy, I think Jaune and his friends may be in _serious_ trouble!"

The lanky hacker turned to his recently official girlfriend with a sly grin. They were both about the same age, each a year and a half older than Jaune. And though he was usually pale due to lack of exposure, he currently seemed flushed and full of color as he darted between several tables of tools laid out in the control room without his spectacles, something the savvy Arc found odd.

"Uh... Cy, you okay?" she sighed in frustration, "Are you even paying _attention_ to me?"

"Of _course_ I'm payin attention, luv!" he replied as he darted under a table to look for more tools, "It was about the thing and the school and the freaks and the Grimm and all that barmy brill..."

Getting up to lay out a wide assortment of tools on the grimy temporary table, the cryptic picked up a dirty towel to clumsily wipe himself clean and began to make his way across Gabriel when the young woman, who barely reached his shoulder in height, shot her hand up to his chin and pulled him to her in a huff.

"Cyrus, I _know_ you have an IQ of a super-computer and can multitask between programming, reading, messaging, eating, gaming, cursing and hacking _all at the same time!_ But right now, you need to listen. To _me_. Gabriel Arc. And if what's been said is true, then bad things might happen in Vale, and if bad things happen in _Vale_ they might happen to my brother and if they happen to my _brother _they'll happen to you _too_ and if they happen to _you_ then I'll feel bad cuz _I'll_ be the one who does them and if I feel bad I'll have to get _over_ it! And... and..."

She stopped her ensuing rant as Cipher put both hands on her freckled cheeks and looked in her eyes, the only way he knew how to stop her before she went full rant.

And Monty _knows_ how Gabriel Arc could get when she got into a full rant.

"Gabe, I know. Okay? I _know_. You'll have to trust me, luv. I got a lil' sumthin' special in the works for the chaps at Vale!"

Gabriel was a bit too lost in his hazel eyes to answer. If it was two things Gabriel Arc was a sucker for, it was brains and eyes, and that young cryptic had both. She blinked a few more times before responding.

"Your hands smell like engine grease."

"That's cuz they're _covered_ in it!" Cypher had to hold back from laughing as he withdrew his hands from her face, seeing the smudges left in their place, "Don't worry luv, not a mark on ya! Come 'ere, why don't ya take a gander at my latest project?"

Taking the dubious girl into the antechamber, her jaw dropped at what she now saw in the center of the room.

"Is _that... _what I _think_ it is?"

"Yep."

"And you're gonna-?"

"Yep."

"...Cyrus Fergusson. You're a genius. I _must_ have you now."

"I guess you really _do_ fancy this sort of getup... hmm!"

The cryptic turned to her with pride as he placed his hand around her shoulder. She turned to look at his hand with an eyebrow raised.

"If those mitts of yours on my shirt are _dirty_, I'm gonna-"

The cryptic had already sped away, leaving a large greasy black mark on her starchy white shirt.

"Fergusson! You've just ruined my favorite Oxford! _Prepare to die!_"

* * *

"Good to know we've got our bearings now," Seul stated as the group at beacon had finished their sit-down discussion.

"A battle is like a storm, Mister Sinclair," the Headmaster responded, eliciting a raised brow from every student in the room, "And in a storm, finding true north may prove more elusive when facing the elements firsthand."

"How do you know who I am?" the boy now asked in surprise.

"I know who you both are. Seul Sinclair, May Arc. We've previously had our eyes on you for quite some time, Seul... without intervening, of course. You can thank the dusty old Qrow for that."

May was ecstatic that she was recognized by the Headmaster in her favorite academy in all of Remnant, but her male counterpart didn't seem so thrilled.

"So my multiple 'commissions' in Vale...?"

"An indirect form of initiation," Glynda now cut in, "Most were from us. Practice and challenges to keep you sharp."

"And reports have come in from Dorme that you wish to become a Huntress," Ozpin now asked May, who nodded enthusiastically in response.

"Do you know who I am?"

"Judging by the context, you're Professor Ozpin. You're the headmaster at Beacon," Seul pointed out matter-of-factly. The Professor smiled as he loosely clasped both hands in front of him on the desk.

"Hello."

"Nice to meet you!" May replied gleefully.

"You want to come to my school?"

"Oh dust, yes!" May was beaming in response, and Ruby couldn't help grinning as she watched another story like hers taking place with a result she could already guess. Ozpin shrugged with a smirk.

"Well, okay."

May squeed with joy while Seul however crossed his arms.

"I take my own missions, thank you very much."

The students were agape at the rejection, Jaune even smacked Seul on the arm with the back of his hand in disbelief. The two adults frowned, though Ozpin remained undeterred.

"Very well, Mister Sinclair. It is a rather early invitation, and as such shall remain an open one. Should you decide to change your mind, you'll have until initiation day next school year to let us know."

No response from the pensive boy.

"Alright," Jaune began, taking control of the conversation to mitigate the tension that was growing in the office, "Let's recap. So team RWBY will head out to the CCT to get the word out on the growing Grimm presence outside our walls to the other kingdoms for aid, team VNDS and my team will get ammo and ADA, and you, Professor Ozpin, will put out the announcement to ready the students who can help us to get to the forests, yea?"

"That just about sums it up," Ruby stated.

"We don't have much time, maybe until sundown latest," Glynda now remarked solemnly.

"But _where_ are they in the forest?" May asked with confusion.

Jaune furrowed his brows, "Good point, May-flower. Gimme a sec."

Closing his eyes, Jaune focused on calling out to the presence of his once friendly companion who was now slowly losing his mind in the Emerald Forest. Ozpin and Glynda watched the process they had seen before and known so well as the concentrated face of the knight now resembled the one of their old friend and mentor.

Finally, the ability Jaune had discovered in the forest kicked in once again.

* * *

_Davin!_

_Vin!_

The knight was mentally calling out in hopes of a response, but to no avail.

Instead, his mind's eye now taking him through the Emerald Forest, he lost himself in his new ability as he rapidly crossed trees and creeks and clearings until a mass of rocks appeared ahead. The closer he got to the rocks, however, the more Jaune noticed black forms littering the ground that was once green, but he was moving too quickly towards what he now realized were the ruins to identify them.

Finally reaching the ruins, he crossed the entryway and turned to enter a chamber when he finally saw him. The disheveled young man alone in the center of the room staring right at him with eerie red eyes as if he knew he was there.

_Vin?_ Jaune externalized the thought in his mind as if he were talking to him, even though he wasn't actually there.

_Jeez Vin, what happened to you?_

The pale young man then let out a deafening inhuman roar, forcing the knight to open his eyes back at Ozpin's office in a cold sweat.

* * *

"Jaune? Jaune!" Ruby began worriedly as he finally focused on her, "Oh thank dust! We were trying to get you to wake up for several minutes! What happened?"

Regaining his bearings, Jaune simply turned to the Headmaster.

"He's at the ruins. The same ones where we told you we found that Grimm."

A rare look of worry passed over the Professor's face, an emotion he almost never expressed in public.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Absolutely _positive?_"

"_Yes! _I was just telling you this earlier! They're at the ruins, and I think they're gathering some kind of army. Saw it with my own eyes."

Though the students raised an eyebrow at the perspiring knight, Ozpin and Glynda didn't seem to doubt him for a second.

"Mister Arc..." the Headmaster finally began, "The Landfall Ruins, though forgotten by most, was the location of one of the most pivotal - and unexplained - battles in the Great War. The turning point, actually. If they are _there_, then all doubt is purged and I can only fear the worst. A battle _will_ be imminent..."

He glanced at the youths in the room... students, still training to become fighters. His hope that they would never have to fight another war was beginning to fade, but he had faith that with victory, the battle could prevent another Great War.

"...and this is a battle we _cannot_ lose," Ozpin added decisively, "That being the case, as the academy's only full team of Hunters, Glynda, Oobleck, Port and myself shall join in as soon as we've secured Beacon. You may all be dismissed."

As the students got up and were shown the door by Glynda, Ozpin held Jaune back for a moment longer.

"You and I will need to have a serious discussion about your 'notes' later."

Jaune narrowed his eyes at the silver-haired man.

"No, we _won't_." Ozpin cocked a stern brow at the knight as Jaune continued, "I've got my source and I've shared the knowledge, just like _you_ have your source and have been so kind to share, too. But I was entrusted with it, just like you were with _yours_, however it is you know the things you know. So I will share as I see _fit_."

Ozpin's expression softened as he stood up.

"Very well, but I urge you exercise the utmost caution with whom you choose to share that information."

Nodding once, Jaune turned and exited the office.

* * *

_**The Valean War  
**__TPS (c) 2014_


	41. Vol 1-39: The Landfall Ruins

_**The Landfall Ruins  
**__-XXXIX-_

* * *

Ruby rushed towards her dorm along with Sun, Seul and May.

However, she just couldn't shake off her curiosity about Seul's reasons for rejecting such a prestigious offer. It was unheard of... even Davin hadn't been able to resist such an offer, and _he_ didn't have any memories!

'Oh Vin...' the distraught crimsonette thought to herself as the group raced through the courtyards. This was not helping her focus.

'Uuuugh, gotta put my head on something else! Um... Crescent Rose? Mm no, reminds me of Vin too... um, cookies? No, bad idea...'

Her stomach grumbled as she turned to look at the boy running beside her who also seemed distraught, her thoughts coming back full circle and refueling her curiosity.

'Ohhhh, okay! Seul it is, then!'

Ruby held Seul back just outside the dorm building as Sun and May ran forward, the latter pair turning to the former with some confusion.

"Don't wait up for us!" the red leader called out, "I just wanna talk to Seul for a sec!"

Sun turned to his adorable companion.

"Uh, I guess you can come with me then? Our team room is a few floors up, you can make yourself comfortable there... just, don't do anything Jaune would do."

The girl nodded, after which they each ran into the building. The boy who stayed back now turned to the crimsonette with some curiosity as well.

"What's this about, Ruby?"

She pursed her lips at him as if she were about to chide him, "Why'd you do it, Seul?"

"Do what."

"Why'd you say no to Ozpin?"

"...Are we seriously doing this right now?"

He glared at the younger girl standing in front of him as she crossed her arms and pouted... admittedly, quite adorably. She was only about a year younger than him as opposed to all of the other older girls in this place, and he had to give beauty credit where credit was due.

But not even Monty and all his forces would make Seul talk when he didn't want to. The boy let his glare simmer on the girl, crossing his own arms as he intensified his gaze before finally getting her to crack.

"_Fine!_ You're just as bad as _Blake,_" Ruby retorted, "Can we at least walk and talk?"

She amiably motioned towards the door. Seul grunted, picking up his weapon which rested on his side and using it as a cane as he accompanied the girl into the building.

'Why is it always so hard to talk to people...' Ruby thought to herself in frustration as they entered.

But after a minute or so, Seul did break the silence.

"It's kinda pointless."

Almost having missed his quiet remark, Ruby quickly turned her head at him, features lit in anticipation.

"Hmm? Didn't catch that last part."

He couldn't help a small chuckle at her quirky personality, but turned to look ahead as he walked with resumed nonchalance.

"I can fight Grimm whenever I want. What difference does it make if I do it from an academy?"

Ruby seemed to think it over for a moment, "...well, you wouldn't be alone."

"Um, Ruby, I'm not sure if you've gotten to know my style, but..."

She waved both hands out as if trying to erase what she had just said, "No, no. I don't mean how you _fight!_ You're really good at that, and you're weapon is really cool! I mean, like... _alone_, Seul. You don't have to be! We can be here to, you know, back you up if you need it and stuff, and be your friends!"

His small smile faded as he realized she was being serious.

"Look, I appreciate the gesture," he began firmly, now guessing correctly the reason for his companion's recent agitation, "And I know we're here because that Vin guy isn't doing so well, but I don't know him. A week ago, all he was to me was a black dot on a map of Vale. _I'm_ here because I want to see all Grimm wiped off the face of the planet. So as far as anyone in this school is concerned, I'm just passing through."

Ruby exhaled sharply before responding, "You told us why you're here, remember? In the airship. There's more to you than just _killing_, Seul..."

They fell into a brief silence as they reached a staircase before Ruby continued.

"You know, I lost my mom when I was little too..." The boy now glanced at the dejected crimsonette as they climbed the stairs, "And at first, all I wanted was to help people. My parents always wanted us to help others, so I thought, Hey, I might as well make a career out of it! No need for others to help you do that, right?"

"Mhm."

"_Wrong!_"

The smile returned on Seul as he glanced at her again with a raised eyebrow. She was an interesting one.

"...you see Seul, and I know I'm gonna sound like my big _sister_ for saying this, 'If you wanna grow up, you're gonna have to meet new people and learn to work together'! I hated when she said that... but it turns out, she was right. Beacon has helped me learn and grow, things that help me fight the Grimm waaay better than if I were alone. And yea, I have a team of _awesomeness_ to back me up too!"

And for the first time she could remember, Ruby now saw Seul grinning without restraint.

"You're funny," he admitted with a chuckle, "In a good way. And you're right... you sound like _my_ older sister too."

Ruby's eyes widened as she replied, "You have a sister _too?_"

"Yep." Seul sighed as they rounded another flight of stairs, "And she would tell me things like that all the time... well, write, at least. She _really_ didn't like to talk, liked it even less than I did. But things changed after the accident with my parents, not sure why... she just never spoke again. And as easily as she used to do at home thanks to her semblance, she just disappeared from my life. That's when Qrow took me in."

Ruby felt bad for the boy. She wondered how many people he had ever revealed this part about himself to before as she opened the door to their floor.

"Then he taught you to fight, didn't he."

Seul nodded, "And here I am today, sworn to use my cursed semblance to end the monsters in the world, no matter what."

"Doesn't have to be that way."

The boy raised an eyebrow.

"No?"

"Nope!"

"You're kidding, right?"

"Nope!"

"...Enlighten me."

Ruby grinned adorably at the opportunity.

"Do you want to slay monsters?"

"Yes."

"Then do it the way Qrow would've wanted you to. The way your _parents_ would've wanted you to. And you know what, stick with _us_ long enough and one day you'll be glad you did."

"And why is that?" he replied with another unavoidable smile.

"Cuz like _me_, one day you'll realize that it was way better to take on the world with your friends by your side!"

There really was no arguing with this one.

"Hmm... I'll think about it, then."

Ruby smiled, "Good! We'd be lucky to have you!" and looking over his shoulder, she concluded, "That's team Vandas' room, spelled V, N, D, S. You can stick with them while my team and I go to the CCT!"

"Sounds good." He paused as the pair saw Jaune running by to turn the corner around his room. Ruby waved as she began to follow the knight.

"Bye!"

* * *

"This is kinda cool," Yang couldn't help remarking as she looked around the large techy room. Few others were inside since classes were going on, which left team RWBY largely alone to their own devices.

"Are you telling me you've _never_ been inside the CCT, Yang?"

The brawler shook her head at her icy companion's query, to which the heiress exhaled sharply.

"Figures."

Walking up to the front desk, a nice hologram lady powered up to greet them.

'_Hello, welcome to the Beacon Cross Continental Transmit center. How may I help you?'_

Blake reached into her vest pocket and pulled out a small scroll of paper.

"Yes, we need to make an urgent call to the High Council of Remnant. We must request military backup for a clear and present threat to kingdom security."

The AI took a moment to process the inquiry.

'_I see. Do you have your one-time-use special access code?_'

The cat-faunus looked down at the paper, reading off the code given to Ruby during the sit-down at the Headmaster's office.

"Of course. Tango-Victor-Whiskey-Niner-Niner."

'_Oh!_' the AI replied, seemingly surprised, '_Absolutely! If you could head over to Terminal 1, I'll patch you through_.'

The girls smiled, "Thanks!"

Walking over to the main terminal of the room which was retrofitted for conference calls, every smile slowly faded from their faces before Weiss spoke out loud what they were already thinking.

"I find it very _odd_ that the front desk lady would seem so startled to know we had that access code!"

Ruby sighed, "It's just a machine, Weiss..."

Now reaching the terminal, the girls found themselves at a bit of an impasse as they looked at all the buttons.

"Uh, Weiss, _you_ handle the buttons!" a slightly overwhelmed Ruby stated quickly, much to the heiress' chagrin.

"Why _me?_" she protested in dismay.

Yang raised an eyebrow, "Uhh, cuz you're the heiress to a giant dust empire and you most likely know how to use these do-hickeys?"

"No, not _these_ terminals," Weiss complained meekly, "I never figured them out... my sister used to work them for me..."

"Here, _I'll_ do it." Blake irritably sat down at the terminal, leaning over the large panel to push the 'connect' button, "There. Wasn't so hard, was it?"

The girls looked up as the terminal was trying to connect, distracted by a sudden loud feedback coming from the building's speakers. A familiar voice finally rang out in echoes around the room.

_Students of Beacon Academy..._

"Who's that?" Yang asked.

_This is your Headmaster._

"Oh."

_I'll... keep this brief. I mentioned once that you had traveled to this Academy in search of knowledge - to hone your craft and aquire new skills..._

Outside the campus, several students were nearing the airship hangar when they slowed at the sound of the announcement. Pyrrha turned to Jaune.

"Isn't that Ozpin?"

"Yea!" Jaune called out over the noise of the speakers, "He's making the announcement to move teams to the ruins!"

_...and when you had finished, you planned on dedicating your lives to the protection of the people. As Huntsmen to be, it is our sworn duty to protect this world from the forces that conspire against it..._

"Something's wrong," Blake stated, drawing her team's attention to the screen. Ruby furrowed her brows at the image behind the heavy static.

"What _is_ that?"

"It's an emblem," Weiss replied, "it's quite similar to the Atlas emblem, but something's different. I can't tell with all the interference..."

_...Which is why I mentioned once that knowledge could only carry you so far... And today is when we find out. Today, the time to make good on our word has arrived. All students will be receiving coordinates to their scrolls shortly..._

Jaune looked down at his buzzing scroll as the students entered the hangar, team VNDS and its two additions passing him on their way to ADA.

"How thoughtful..." Jaune mused to himself as he read the message with the coordinates to Landfall Ruins.

"Jaune, we must leave now!"

The knight turned to look at his red-haired partner who was trying to get his attention from ADA.

'_Your lady-friend has a point there, Jaune!_' Neptune blared out through the loudspeakers as the ship began lifting off.

"Alright, one second!" the knight responded as he put the final keystrokes on a message and hit send, "We just need to stop by the CCT!"

And easily jumping onto the closing ramp several feet up, Jaune joined the departing airship to Beacon.

_...Drafting for second to fourth-year teams is mandatory. For first-year teams... also mandatory. Any remaining faculty will stay and stand guard over Beacon..._

Ruby's scroll buzzed as the terminal in front of the team went blank, the other students in the CCT already having geared up and left.

"Guys it's Jaune, we have to go!"

"Bu-" Blake began as she motioned to the terminal.

"But nothing! No time left!"

Leaving the dead terminal, the girls were the last ones to leave the CCT.

_...As for the departing forces, your abilities will be evaluated once again in the Emerald Forest. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path... Or you will die._

* * *

Though ADA was one of the last airships to leave Beacon, it was one of the first to reach the insertion point. This was partly due to Jaune's new and very accurate method of tracking Davin, and partly because ADA was the fastest in the fleet.

"Is that everyone?" Neptune called back to Jaune from the cockpit as the knight ushered the last student off the ship, "I'll need to go ahead and check the perimeter around the ruins!"

Jaune nodded back before jumping off, "Sounds good, keep us posted!"

As ADA disappeared over the canopy, the students were now quite surprised to see the team that hopped off the next airship: Team CRDL.

"Not gonna lie... didn't see that one coming," Blake casually remarked as the four bird-themed students landed in the small clearing beside them.

"Nope," Ren agreed as well.

Their mace-wielding leader and Jaune walked up to each other halfway between the large groups. Not too macho or anything, more like a re-evaluation of an old acquaintance.

"Cardin," the knight began with a slightly impressed tone, "I didn't expect your team to come. Heh, I thought _you_ four would run away from this kind of thing for sure!"

The mace-wielder shrugged, scoffing with standoffish confidence, "That would be a _no_, Jauney-boy. Look, I'm a changed man now!"

The knight raised an eyebrow as most of team JNPR were already subconsciously reaching for their weapons.

"Oh really?"

Cardin sighed, casting aside his tough guy front.

"Yea... we've thought a lot about what you said, Jaune. And I'm pretty crappy when it comes to explaining stuff, so I'll let Bronzewing here do it _for_ me." He pointed with his chin at the most clean-cut of his teammates, a boy with medium-dark blond hair, "Turns out he's _quite_ the poet! Terrible fighter, though. But we've worked out a trading system - sparring lessons for homework assignments!"

"Looks like he's made _lots_ of progress~..." Nora whispered sarcastically to her chuckling stoic.

"Anyways," Cardin continued towards his teammate, "Why don't you explain to our friends why we're here today, Dove?"

Bronzewing stepped forward, straightening out as if he were about to begin a military recital.

"We're here today because there's hope for us, Cardin! Hope in the form of glorious combat! For battle is the great redeemer, the fiery crucible in which the only true heroes are forged! The one place where all men truly share the same rank!-"

"Regardless of what kind of parasitic scum they were going in?" Cardin asked with a surprisingly warm and proud smile for his teammate.

"..._Regardless_ of the kind of parasitic scum they were going in!" the poet concluded as he stepped back to rejoin his teammates. Cardin turned to Jaune with a grin.

"Heh, I love this guy! Couldn't have said it better myself! You see, Jaune, we've found ways to channel the more... _aggressive_... parts of our personalities to the destruction of the monsters that deserve it!"

"Don't forget about _me_, Cardin!" the poet waved with elation to his captain.

Cardin deadpanned.

"And in Bronzewing's case..." the mace-wielder added slowly, "To the creative arts."

"Hmm, alright then," Jaune stated cooly as he put his hand on the ex-bully's shoulder, "Glad to have you with us!"

Turning back, the white knight now saw more and more teams arriving at the clearing, students unsure of where to go next.

"Kinda getting crowded in here," Ren remarked to his pensive leader.

Jaune could sense a very strong dark presence a mile or two in the distance, but it was through very thick forest. It was doubtlessly the ruins, but they were going to have to figure out an easier way to travel through the forest to get there. After a moment, however, Jaune grinned as he happened to glance at a certain particularly uninterested boy.

"Hey, Seul. Wanna be a lumberjack today?"

Seul gawked at the knight, "You kidding me? I wouldn't even be able to hold up my sword by the time I'm done!"

Jaune grinned even wider, "Then allow _me_..." And in another moment, a wisp of his aura-projected hand had already brushed Seul's arm, replicating the dangerous semblance in the knight's aura.

"...Alright guys, you might wanna stand back," Jaune now stated loudly to those surrounding him as he turned to the direction of the ruins and unsheathed Crocea Mors.

Twirling his own sword around to test its new air-catching ability, the knight began to glow white as he spun his sword around himself faster and faster, catching more air around him. The few dozen students in the clearing now did as they were told, standing back as the knight's aura filled his sword.

"YAH!"

And with a strong slash at the forest, a huge air-blade flew out of Crocea Mors, chopping clean through hundreds of trees.

_ShhhunkshunshunshunshunSHUNK!_

Finally, with a loud wooden groan, the trees between the students and the ruins fell down, clearing out an area of at least a square mile. The boy turned to Jaune.

"What to do about those felled trees?"

"I got this."

Both Jaune and Seul turned to see Viktor approaching, who then made his way between the two students as he pulled at the hilt of the weapon strapped to his back.

Much like Crescent Rose, as the small weapon came out, it unfolded in short metal segments with small _clicks_ to form a large saber with its sharp side glowing with red aura.

"That's an Aegis energy sword..." Seul and Ruby each stated with awe. And twirling the rare and relatively unknown weapon over his head, the fox-faunus drove his mecha energy sword into the ground in front of him.

The action caused a small fiery red orb to come up and out from the bottom of the weapon's hilt, stopping at eye height of the student.

"Okay, who wants to give my little flash-bomb a push? My cousin Fox used to do that part and, well... he's not around anymore," Viktor turned to the boy, "how about you... _Seul_, right?"

The boy nodded.

"Last name?"

"Sinclair."

"Hmm... you strike me as more of a Windsor or something," the fox-faunus stated, "Ah well, just give this guy a little push into the forest."

"Alright."

Getting behind it, the boy opened the umbrella and compressed it with a forceful blast, sending the orb speeding into the forest. Satisfied, the fox-faunus seemed to mentally begin to count down before giving a final warning.

"Might wanna cover your eyes!"

And turning away, Viktor pressed a button on the side of his hilt which ignited the bomb and created a chain reaction that further flattened the area Jaune had slashed through with a giant fireball and vaporized the greenery, leaving charred logs strewn across the larger clearing.

He turned to Seul and patted him on the back.

"Thanks, Seul Windsor."

"_Sinclair_."

"Ah, right," the fox-faunus stated before adding with a mumble, "Now that I think of it, you'd make a pretty decent OC..."

"O-what?" the boy echoed, having caught some of what was said.

"Uh, nothing!"

Seul would've questioned the strange fox further but the large group of students were now noticing a growing rumbling sound around them. And suddenly, like a myriad of ants that appear after stepping on an anthill, swarms of Grimm began appearing at the edges of the unharmed forest around the clearing and pouring into the large space towards the students.

As he noticed the Beowolves, Ursae, Deathstalkers, Borbatusks and types of Grimm he'd never even seen before block out the clear path to the ruins, he grunted loudly in a mix of frustration and exhilarating anticipation of doing what he did best.

"Looks like we're doing this the hard way!"

Blake, who was within earshot of that shout, winced as she charged forward alongside her team slightly angrier than before. Jaune and Pyrrha, however, held Yang back as the dozens of students around them rushed the oncoming hordes.

"Yang, a word!"

The brawler raised a brow, "Now!?"

"Yes," the Spartan began as quickly as she could, "Yang, you know Davin may very well be in there, right?"

The blonde's expression darkened a bit in response.

"Yea, so?"

"_So_," Jaune replied, "I'm worried of what you'll be willing to do if you meet him out there. He will _not _recognize you Yang, which means he _will_ fight to kill... and he's flooded with dark energy right now which means he's stronger, faster, and deadlier than you. He was fighting like _ten_ Hunters back at Beacon!"

The brawler narrowed her eyes at the pair, "Yea, but do you think he's one _tenth_ as pissed off as I am!?"

She engaged Ember Celica and turned to face an incoming pack of Beowolves as Pyrrha called out to her one more time.

"Remember, you unlocked his aura! You are both connected, so use that to your advantage as best you can!"

And that was it. The hordes were now upon them as every student from Beacon got to work, more arriving by the minute to face the hundreds of Grimm on the forest valley floor. Yang went to work, laying waste to the pack that charged her with several gauntlet-punches and well placed spinning kicks to several Beowolves, winking at the last one before smashing it into the ground.

However, Beowolves were now succeeded by Ursae as the larger Grimm rushed her, and though the brawler easily dispatched the first two, she was swatted a few feet to the side by an Ursa Major that blindsided her.

She got up with flaming hair at the cheap shot.

"Now you're gonna _get_ it- whaa?" Yang gaped as the Ursa Major suddenly levitated, but then crashed to the ground with a resounding _crack_ of its neck and was thrown away into the treeline.

She turned to see an outstretched riding crop being held by Miss Goodwitch, who then pushed her glasses into place as customary with a finger from her free hand and a satisfied _hmpf_.

"Al-right, Miss Goodwitch!" Yang cheered with a wink and thumbs-up as the Huntress smiled in return. Both then split up so that Yang could take care of the rest of the startled Ursae while the other Professors now joined the fray.

Ozpin joined Glynda as each one took turns lashing out at Grimm, the Huntress levitating the dark beasts into the air while the Headmaster tore through them with the aura-projected spearhead of his cane. Each master Hunter moved around each other in their offense, anticipating each other's moves as if they had been fighting together for centuries.

"There are _hundreds_ of them, Ozpin!" she called out to her long-time partner in the heat of battle. The Headmaster knew it as well.

Oobleck and Port joined Sun's group of four as a horde of Deathstalkers charged them, the two Professors staying back to open fire. As Oobleck pelted several Grimm with exaggerated explosive missile blasts from Sir Michael Bay, Port flipped his double-axe over to launch huge fireballs from the butt of his weapon at them too.

"We must dispatch them as quickly as possible!" the green-haired teacher commanded Sun and Seul, "That way we can focus on the smaller Grimm, otherwise they will overrun us!"

"At this rate, they'll overrun us anyway," Seul stated grimly.

Before Sun could engage the nearest unharmed Deathstalker, however, he felt hurried pokes on his back. He turned to see a very apprehensive Velvet pointing up at the sky.

"What is it, Velv?"

May finished the thought for her, "Our _airship!_"

Sure enough, Sun could now see ADA careening over the tree canopy with four Nevermores hard on its heels, the multiple turrets in a frenzy as they tried to hold off the giant birds of prey.

"Neptune!" Sun cried out in dismay as the birds started ramming the airship.

"The ship is out of our weapon's range!" the moustached professor lamented, each of the group's weapons couldn't reach the fight in the air that Neptune was quickly losing.

But just before the largest Nevermore could ram the cockpit head-on, a flash of light suddenly knocked the bird out of the sky with blazing fireworks. Weiss now looked up at the several incoming flashes of light coming towards the remaining Nevermores.

"What on Remnant are _those!?_"

Inside ADA, a frazzled Neptune noticed as the remaining birds were taken out by arcade-themed androids, one such android with a arcade character image for a face stopping in front of the cockpit window to give the blue-haired student a thumbs-up.

Neptune sighed in relief, "_Thank_ you, Pac-man!"

Sun and his group, though, were unable to get a moment of relief as three more Deathstalkers blindsided them on the valley floor. The three giant Grimm were about to deliver a triage of deadly stinger attacks when three small objects pierced through each of their exoskeletons with gurgling _squishes_, the three creatures becoming still for a moment before completely exploding in large flowers of flame.

"Okay. That was fantastic!" Oobleck stated quickly as pieces of Deathstalkers landed around the disgusted students, followed by the landing of what looked like a smaller and much sleeker Paladin right in front of them.

At high alert, all the students aimed their weapons at the iron suit when it suddenly held out both hands placatingly, its facemask lifting up over its helmet to reveal none other than the cryptic himself.

"Wait-wait! Don't fire!"

"_Cipher!?_" fhe four teens shouted in shock.

"In the iron _flesh_, mates!" he stated proudly as the iron suit bowed generously.

"That thing's an iron _monger_, Cy!" May remarked with a wide grin, to which he nodded his head pensively.

"Hmm, good one. That lil' moniker may catch on, Maybelline! Though I still fancy 'Iron Gunmen' a tad more..."

The girl pouted angrily, "_Not_ my name."

"_'Course_ not!" the cryptic replied with a wink.

"My dear boy!" Professer Port now bellowed gratefully, "Our eternal gratitude for your intervention! But _how_ did you manage to send the three giant beasts of Grimm to their fiery graves with such ease!?"

Cipher grinned, "With _napalm_, dear sir! Lots and lots of napalm!"

And suddenly with arm-mounted dual machine guns mecha-shifting out of his suit's forearms, the cryptic pointed at the clearing behind the group.

"Look out!"

And with very loud and very large caliber rounds emptied out into the three Ursa Majors that had tried to ambush the group from the rear, Seul was now quite sure that the suit wasn't standard military issue.

"_How_, Cyrus? I never even saw you building it."

"Well you weren't exactly _around_ all the time either!" the cryptic retorted, "Just needed the programming which I finally got from the Paladin back at Dorme to complete the bloody suit. Like I said before, I'd been genning up on the machines since they hit the rumor forums! I'd had this baby in my secret man-cave under the antechamber the whole time! Not even Gabe knows about the secret cave!"

An electronic ringing now resounded in their ears.

'_Well I know NOW, Cyrus dear!_'

His face scrunched up in frustration.

"BUGGER! *_sigh_*"

And just then, the real Paladins landed behind the endless flow of Grimm in front of the ruins, the giant robots now making their way into the fray as well.

"Bollocks! Time to budge up! You lot can take the beasties and I'll take the bots, yea?"

The Professors and teens nodded.

"Right! Off I go!" Cipher blasted off as the others turned to face more Grimm, landing among the rest of his androids as they awaited orders.

"Pac-man! Frogger! Donkey Kong! You three take the Reds and flank those gaggin' naffs to the left, yea?" The cryptic pointed at each android lieutenant as he barked out more orders, "Riu! Tron! Luigi! You three take the Blues and flank them to the right, and you box their ears good, understand?"

The karate gi-themed android nodded, beeping once in agreement.

"Jolly good then! _Have at it, Autocons!_"

The few dozen androids blasted off and circled around to the advancing ranks of Paladins just before a particularly large Elite Paladin came up to the iron cryptic, to which Cipher closed his facemask with a metallic _clank_.

'_Resistance is futile, civilian,_' the large AI-powered unit stated emotionlessly, '_Our technology is more advanced than yours in every way._'

"_Well_," Cipher began from inside his suit with a shrug, "I guess if your tech is more advanced in every way then I may as bloody well just surren-TANK MISSIIILE!~" and jerking his metallic arm out to the Elite, he fired a single round into the hull of the Paladin.

It merely looked down at the impact point before-

_BOOM!_

The cryptic ginned inside the mask, "_Dust_ I love this thing! Are all systems at full power, luv?"

'_Yes, visor and repulsor weapons online now!_' Gabriel's voice came through within his helmet as LED HUDs lit up around his face.

Over at Flynn's Arcade, the spiffy Arc daughter ran back and forth between screens and keypads, each one monitoring his systems as she pressed a few more keys that activated two smaller railgun-like appendages that flexed around and over his shoulders which were actually repulsor cannons.

Her fedora placed on the central desk, Gabriel leaned down towards a lone mic on the console as she brushed aside a ginger-blonde bang that had fallen in front of her eyes.

"Stay safe, Cy..."

Cipher's voice returned across the line as confident as ever.

'_Always, luv!_'

* * *

Uncountable time passed, as is usual in the case of war, but with the course of the day, the students seemed to be pushing towards the ruins.

The Paladins had joined the fray but were landlocked by the resilient androids which fought on the ground and in the air, aiding ADA and a few others of Beacon's surviving weaponized airship fleet against the Nevermores above.

The flow of incoming Grimm seemed endless, hordes of them emerging from the forest. And seemingly without any interest in the machines, they charged right for the students. Of all the teams, team RWBY was the closest to the ruins, having followed Ruby's lead of sticking to the edge of the clearing and making their way close to the side entrances of the ruins.

That is, until two new dark allies joined the fray.

Not too far from Landfall Ruins, Yang had finally rejoined her team as each girl dispatched their fair share of Grimm when each of them heard a resounding blast coming from the ruins.

"That doesn't sound good!" Ruby cried out as the team suddenly had to shield themselves from raining android parts.

Once the brawler saw the last tendrils of black electricity disappear from the metallic pieces, she knew.

"Guys, it's Vin!"

"Yang, wait!" Blake called out as she downed the last Grimm in their immediate vicinity, but was too late to stop the blonde from performing a gauntlet-powered leap towards the ruins.

"We have to follow her!" Ruby shouted, at which her remaining two teammates joined her as they leapt the large distance over the fighting Grimm and machines.

Glynda and Ozpin, who were punching a considerable hole through the center of the Grimm and Paladin lines, noticed the incredible feats of aura-enhanced agility through the air that the girls were performing which they hadn't seen in generations.

The Headmaster's eyes widened ever so slightly behind his grimy spectacles.

"Impossible..."

"Ozpin, if they're doing what I think they will, it's _suicide_," the Huntress stated as she threw down and neutralized an Ursa Rex, then pointing her riding crop at the leaping members, "Do we stop them?"

He saw the determined brawler finally land, her flaming hair clearly distinguishable even from a distance, the fierce determination in her body-language clearer still.

"No," he stated, much to the noticeable surprise of his partner, "She was able to unlock his aura single-handedly. If there's anyone who can save him, it's _her_."

"But it's never been done before!"

The Headmaster softly shook his head, "We've heard that quite a bit this year, haven't we... -incoming."

The discussion now over, the two partners now took on the herd of elephant-sized Grimm coming right at them.

At the ruins, Ruby, Weiss and Blake finally landed as Yang stood cross-armed in waiting. Unlike her team, she seemed a bit out of breath, as if she had been sprinting.

"Took you guys long enough."

"Well we're not just going to let you jump off and get yourself _killed_, Xiao Long," the heiress retorted hotly, but cooled off as she added, "We wouldn't do that. You're our teammate!"

"Good!" the brawler replied with a smile, "Cuz I have a feeling they're just over that ro-OH."

The team turned to look at what caught the attention of the blonde behind them, and looking up at a large rocky outcropping from the ruins, they noticed the two dark figures at its peak, black aura cascading all around them.

"You three take Crudus," the brawler commanded resolutely, "_I'll_ handle Vin."

"How are we even going to _split_ them!" Blake cried out.

"And are you _crazy? _You won't last five minutes!" the snowy-haired heiress retorted. Yang sighed, her decision final.

"Look, guys. I know I'm usually the girl to wing it in a fight without any planning going into it, but trust me, _this_ time, I GOT a plan..."

And flicking off the cap off of a pen-like device in her hand, her team now noticed a small crystal embedded in the peak of the outcropping beginning to blink rapidly. Weiss narrowed her eyes at the blonde.

"Are _those_ my delayed-explosive dust crystals!?"

Yang Xiao Long flashed her trademark grin at the heiress as she pushed the little red button on the tip of the device in her hand.

"Yep."

* * *

_**The Valean War  
**__TPS (c) 2014_


	42. Vol 1-40: Redemption

**A/N: Alright, alright. So I thought this could be the final chapter...but apparently one cannot sum up a war in a chapter of 10k words. SO, I will have to have the chapter split in two! On the bright side, this chapter ends on a particularly important plot point, so read on, friend. Read on ;)**

**Chapter 40 starts now!**

* * *

_Beep._

_BOOM!_

The rocky outcrop blew to smithereens, sending each dark fighter flying in opposite directions.

"Alright, you heard Yang, let's split!" The crimsonette commanded to her teammates.

Blake glanced over at the brawler who gave her a single decisive nod before leaving to find the young man... it was something Yang had to do on her own. So without further objection, the cat-faunus turned to leave with her team to fight the chainsaw-wielding White Fang leader.

As soon as Crudus got up to swing his weapon at his attackers, his chainsaw was parried by three different blades, a matchup he found most insulting. Slashing the revving saw across the three blades again with greater strength, he sent the girls skidding back with a cruel snicker.

"_Three young girls is the best they can throw at me? Why don't you three little piglets run back to Beacon so I can huff and puff and blow your school down over you and your friends? Hehe..._"

Blake growled before looking at Weiss and readying her weapon.

"Now _that_, Weiss, is a degenerate rapscallion."

The heiress nodded, "Agreed. Fortunately, there's a mag for that. Here, this should help you."

And tossing Blake a black magazine filled with dust vials, Weiss readied Myrtenaster as her two teammates loaded their respective blades as well.

Ruby went in first with a fast twirl of her blade but pulled back in a feint, leaving Crudus slashing at a burst of petals and exposed to Blake's incoming attack. With the powerful chainsaw, he managed a backhanded slash strong enough to defend against her initial strike with Gambol Shroud but proved too slow to dodge a deftly placed scissor-kick which the agile catgirl had executed on a sideways blue gravity glyph cast by Weiss under his slash, sending him reeling sideways.

Recovering quickly, he hefted his wide-bladed chainsaw in time to block several fiery bullets from Gambol Shroud before turning the blade on the advancing heiress. His chainsaw twirls against her lighter blade were so strong that she seemed to have difficulty maintaining control over Myrtenaster, to which his menacing chuckle returned.

"_Finally, I get to kill a Schnee_..."

As Crudus advanced on Weiss, who also seemingly just stood there with Myrtenaster en garde, he was unexpectedly met with another red flash, disorienting him just long enough to be met with a series of slashes from Gambol Shroud.

"I don't think so, bub," Blake stated as blades locked again.

"Yea, you really gotta learn to tell when you're getting baited!" Ruby yelled as she swept Crescent Rose under his weapon, firing the scythe upwards to dislodge the chainsaw from his grip and send his weapon hurdling several feet in the air.

But before she could react, the dark faunus grabbed her by the arm and literally flung her at Blake, who had to duck back before impact to avoid being sliced by the outstretched scythe.

"_You should learn to take your own advice_." He replied as he caught his falling weapon and quickly turned on Weiss again, slashing and swiping at her while she dodged and countered every attack she could with flashes of fire and ice.

He swung the blunt end of the blade knocking the snow-haired girl off balance, and just as he was about to deliver the deadly finishing slice, his chainsaw froze inside what looked like an icy flash of Blake's shadow.

"_Wha-!_"

And quickly needing to dodge more Gambol Shroud slashes, Crudus ducked under a wide slice and came back up to return the offensive with a series of punches which only met fiery shadow-clones. But having reached his real objective, he how used the momentum of the final punch in his combo to break his weapon free from icy confinement and resume his assault on the catgirl, his renewed ferocity now proving difficult for her to handle as well.

Flipping herself backwards, Blake now made way for another upwards scythe-strike which the faunus-man had to deflect with a low horizontal chainsaw block, and in that second of defense now found himself in the middle of a three-student circle of flashing blades as he ducked and parried the blasts of ice, fire and sniper rounds from the girls.

It took a brief split-second of a pause between all three girls' attacks before the dark faunus leader could respond with a 360 degree chainsaw spin from the ground up to break free from the circle, and thus began the repeating cycle of offense and defense.

* * *

"Vin! Where are you?" Yang called out from another end of the ruins.

She was treading carefully, calculating every step to a degree which would've surprised even her Headmaster. The brawler may not have been the most intelligent student to ever walk the halls at Beacon, but when it came to cleverness...she could give just about anyone a run for their money if she wanted it enough.

She stopped about halfway inside what must have been a shaded patio in the ruins ages ago, as many thick ruined columns rose around her like tree trunks in the forest which most likely once supported a ceiling. The area was now roof-less with the passing of time but the stony columns gave her cover, though they made it difficult for her to track her target as well.

"I know you can see me, Vin...I'm ready for this." The brawler then closed her eyes and breathed deeply.

She could sense him coming as soon as she relaxed with her first breath, all sound ceasing except the whoosh of his incoming attack.

Opening her now-red eyes, Yang half-turned and dug in her first punch, Ember Celica going off as her fist made contact with his head and sent him through several columns with loud sequential crashes. She shouted at him as he got back up with a roar.

"You _taught_ me that breathing technique, Davin! Don't make me have to beat the memory back into you!"

Dodging an incoming black bolt of electricity, she dove for cover among the many columns around her. She had seen him fight, and without a weapon he was deadly enough, but watching him after he went haywire was all she needed. He was fast and had long range bolt attacks and short range telekinesis, so distance and cover was what she planned for the most.

And this was the perfect place.

She gauged her options as she crouched behind a large column. Her objective was clear...she needed time to talk to him (or wear him down), and she needed to move fast. Knowing Vin, talking him out of his game would be her best bet. Yang got right to it.

"Look, Vin! I _know_ you can be a little forgetful sometimes...are you sure you didn't hit your head again?"

She looked up to see him standing right across from her, definitely a bit more peeved than before.

"I'll...take that as a no?" She smiled nervously as she furtively pulled out another trigger from the small pouch on her belt, flicking the cap off which in turn made another crystal start blinking.

Which happened to be right by Davin's head.

He was about to attack when she pushed the button. _Beep._

_BOOM!_

Dodging the rubble, she swung herself around the column by which she crouched and went to work on the disoriented young man, landing her fair share of hardened blows. Evading his return attacks, Yang ducked under two brisk hook-jab combos and delivered a hefty uppercut after each one, seemingly sapping the young man's fight bit by bit with every hit until running out of ammo.

"C'mon, sweetie!" She cooed at the panting young man as the empty shells fell from her gauntlets and she reloaded, "None of this rings any bells from our first _two_ dates in the ring!?"

"_Aargh!_" Not exactly a response, but it was progress.

She continued her assault before running out of ammo again and dodged another bolt of electricity which came so close it left her clothes smelling like smoke.

Landing next to another column, she didn't waste any more time before crouching low and pulling out yet another trigger and flicking off the cap, then quickly pressing the button. _Beep._

_BOOM!_

Having blown a hole in the column she was next to, she got up and pulled two fresh magazines out of the crater where she had hidden more rounds to stay light, quickly reloading Ember Celica as Davin tried to find her. He may have been fast, but in this labyrinth there were no straight-shots.

Fully-loaded, she went around the column expecting to come up to him from behind, but faltered as she saw him turned and looking right at her. Seemingly recovered as well, he now let his black aura flow around him and condense onto his forearms despite his lack of weapon, forming his own pair of fighter gauntlets.

Even in his corrupted state, the young man seemed to show some surprise when Yang now audibly facepalmed.

"Are you kiddin' me, Vin!? Are you seriously friggin' _kidding_ me!" The brawler was fuming as she fearlessly stomped her way towards the young man, "You don't remember making those gauntlets the first time we practiced together? You don't remember using them against me in the meadow the day we first _kissed!?_"

But his brows only furrowed over his red glowing eyes as he snarled at her.

"_I don't KNOW you, you crazy girl with a death wish! YAH!_"

His subsequent right hook and left hook were blocked by a single arm of the infuriated blonde, the sheer force of her semblance taking her power to new heights at the insult. She narrowed her eyes at the young man as she blocked his uppercut with a downwards swipe of Ember Celica.

"Now you _listen_, buddy. I may be crazy, and I may have a death wish by trying to save you...but call me GIRL _one. more. time_... And Monty help me, I'll beat you into a PULP!"

Her eyes flashed back to lilac for just a second as she noticed what looked like recognition finally softening his features, but to her dismay, they only rehardened as he responded.

"_GIRL, you don't even-_"

_WHAM!_

A semblance powered punch sent him flying through at least a dozen stone columns.

"Don't say I didn't warn ya!"

But flashing back with blinding speed, the brawler barely had time to duck backwards to evade a black-gauntlet punch coming right at her, and so began their back-and-forth through the ruins as the battle of Grimm and Paladins against Beacon's and Dorme's forces raged around them.

Flame trailed behind her as she and Davin traded punches, each making full contact with the other but undeterred as the blows rained on, Yang getting stronger with each hit due to her semblance and Davin getting stronger with the progression of his dark corruption.

But finally, the darkness won over as a powerful downwards strike from Davin's dark gauntlet broke Yang's defensive stance, letting him deliver several more crushing blows to her torso and midsection before picking her up by the neck in front of him. His dark aura now leaked out, sapping Yang of her strength and semblance until she heard her scroll begin to beep in her pocket, signaling that her aura had entered dangerously low levels in the red.

But right before she lost consciousness, another flicker of recognition almost seemed to pass over his face, his upper lip twitching and quivering as if there were signs of internal struggle while the siphoning of her aura ceased. However, she was too weak to know for sure, she could've been wrong.

Yet instead of finishing the job, he delivered a firm punch at her midsection, sending her flying into a downed column several yards away. As he walked up to her weakened form, her eyes fluttered open as she asked one last question.

"You really don't remember me...do you."

The corruption having overcome him again, his only response as he readied a double-fisted final blow was a thundering roar, a roar exactly like an Ursa Rex. And that's when Yang felt it.

As Davin's fists came down with impossible force, his eyes widened as they were suddenly stopped by the brawler's outstretched hand, the force from the blow recharging her aura and _more_.

Blasting out a wall of scalding heat which forced the young man back, Yang got up and dusted herself off. Her entire body glowed golden-yellow, flames erupting from every piece of visible skin and her red eyes now glowing in flame as well. Yang sure felt it.

Pain.

Pain from every moment in her short life that had given it to her. Pain from her mother's loss, pain from her failures, and now pain from heartbreak. The fire within her screamed with searing pain in ways her physical body could no longer contain, and all that pain was about to be focused on one target.

"YAAAAAH!"

Impossible power fueled punch after kick of lethal impacts on the young man's body, who had managed to block the first few but fell prey to the sheer heat melting through his very armor as she began wailing on him with more and more strikes. Grass and moss around her caught fire as well, some even spontaneously combusting in the distance due to the heat itself.

Continuing her savage beating, she focused on pummeling his chest, keeping him in a constant state of breathlessness as she now took his shouler in each of her hands and brought him down to her, sending her knee deep into his chest and following with a brutal elbow to the side of the head.

Now grabbing the defeated young man by what was left of the collar of Neptune's stolen jacket and pulling him up to look at her as he collapsed on his knees, she pulled her fist all the way back to put out his lights for good.

But just before her fiery mind could give the neural command to execute...she hesitated. And that hesitation turned to doubt. And that doubt turned to realization.

"You hesitated..." She stated in shock at the young man at her mercy, whose aura was flowing around him desperately trying to heal him as quickly as it could, "you hesitated. You _saved_ Doc by throwing him away from the blast. You didn't kill him when you had the chance. You didn't kill _me_ when you had the chance at Beacon. And you didn't kill me _now_..."

Now, the pain inside her turned to desperation as Davin seemingly recovered his strength, her rage to compassion as she let him get up on his own and took a few steps back from the growling young man. Throughout it, Yang didn't break her gaze into his Grimm-like eyes.

"You're still in there, Vin. I'm gonna get you out."

And as he flashed at her once again with gauntlets blazing, all Davin hit was air as Yang became like a golden streak of flowing light with her speed, spinning left or spinning right and dodging every one of his attacks with her hands behind her back. His voice now resounded in her head from the time before he had fallen to the dark corruption, every word spurring her on as if every punch he was throwing at her now were a recounting of events.

'Nothing in the world can stop you...because in that big heart of yours...right there...lies your power for _good_.'

And now, somehow, the fire in her was feeding her semblance without the need for a hit or any other form of damage, making her much more powerful than she had ever been.

"_You_ can't stop me either, Vin."

With another deafening roar in response, the young man included what was left of his kickboxing repertoire, having lost the rest of his training to the degeneration of his mental faculties due to the Turning. But Yang was now able to hold off punches and kicks with one arm as she held the other behind her back, her small smile only enraging the young man even more as her arm literally blurred with the speed with which she blocked every attack.

Finally showing signs of fatigue, the young man held back as he panted heavily, to which the brawler only grinned.

"My turn."

Yang now responded with a three-punch combo, each strike with the full force of her semblance. Reeling back, Davin now tried to retaliate by trying to hold her down with telekinesis but couldn't as her hand shot out too quickly and grabbed his wrist, twisting it back and now flipping it down and behind him with enough force to cause the young man to flip up and forward in mid-air. Then catching him face up with both arms over her head, the brawler pulled him down as she dropped on one knee, slamming his back on her other knee out in front of her with a loud _crack_.

Davin tried to counter again despite his injury by flipping himself around to connect his right fist to her face, but Yang easily blocked the punch with her left arm as she straightened up with the force of a right-handed uppercut to Davin's underside, the power of her legs pushing her up combining with the force of Ember Celica as it discharged its full round of ammo into him to launch him several feet up into the air.

"I really hope this doesn't change things between us!~" she called out to him as he continued flying upwards.

Now eyeing two large stone columns in front of her, she dashed at one and wall-jumped between them all the way up to their highest points, and with a propelling blast from the rest of her rounds from her other gauntlet launched herself upwards to him as he reached the apex of his ascent.

Blowing the young man a kiss as she reached his height and passed him just a bit, she now quickly flipped herself forward in mid-air with a leg out, and with her boot connecting downwards onto Davin's midsection sent him plummeting to the center of the column-filled patio with a powerful meteor strike while she landed on the tip of another tall column.

Pulling out a final trigger, she flicked the cap off which activated a series of blinking crystals surrounding the slowly recovering young man in a circle. She had aimed her kick perfectly. Taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, Yang looked more like she was praying as she spoke.

"I'm so sorry, Vin...if this is gonna work, I need ya to be weak enough to be restrained. Even if I have to detonate you within an inch of your life to do it." She pressed the button, setting off the crystals all at once.

_Beep. Bee-Beep. BeepBeepBeepBeepBeep-_

_POWWW!_

The entire patio floor came up with the concussive blast around the young man, leaving a sizable crater with only a few remaining columns still standing around it as the tons of dirt fell around the side of the ruins.

Jumping off from her still-standing column, Yang slowly made her way to the center of the crater looking for movement.

"Hey sweetie!..." She called out as she searched for any sign of him, "you still alive?"

The pale-faced young man finally emerged slowly from a pile of dust and small rubble, and catching his outstretched hand with a strange bronze cuff, the brawler handcuffed him as she pulled him out. Similarly cuffing his ankles, she laid the groaning young man out on the demolished patio floor as the two pairs of cuffs now powered on at the same time.

Reaching full power, each cuff magnetized themselves to a pair of long bronze stakes that Yang had driven to the ground which looked oddly like Milo, stretching Davin out by his wrists and ankles and thus completely immobilizing him.

"Got these bad boys from Pyrrha's secret stash of weapons..." The brawler began as she slowly made her way to the writhing form of the young man on the floor, "I heard her joke one time that she was planning to use these on Jaune had he not picked up on her little..._hints_, but I guess I found a better use for them first!"

Now getting down beside the young man, the blonde brawler straddled his midsection as she whipped her hair behind her, adjusting herself slightly for what she was about to do.

"Sheesh! Nikos has all the nice toys!" She couldn't help admitting as the young man tried to free himself from underneath her to no avail, struggling against his shackles like a wounded animal, "Aw, don't be like that Vin! We should've done this sooner!"

Though she seemed confident, her hands shook nervously as she then leant forward on him, placing one hand on his chest and the other on the side of his head as she began to glow a golden yellow.

"Here goes nuthin..."

As she closed her eyes, she focused her energy to do the one thing she had done best for as long as she could remember...

Burn.

* * *

What happened next could only be described in the brawler's mind as a vision.

In her mind's eye, she was soaring through very dense dark clouds surrounding her as her aura flared out like fire, almost as if she were a comet of flames through the darkness of space whooshing by all around her. She finally landed in a small clearing in a crouched position, a small circle of polished gray marble under a dome of clear air as the black clouds flowed all around it.

Yang now looked up, noticing a figure huddled up on the other side of the small space. Even though his back was to her, she immediately knew who he was.

"Vin?"

The figure, seemingly startled, stood up and turned, revealing her assumption to be true.

"Vin!" She shouted as she ran over and jumped on him in an embrace.

"...ow," the young man finally replied weakly, his legs giving out and leaving the two on their knees as Yang refused to let go.

"I thought I'd lost you, Vin...I thought I'd lost you..." She began hastily, her voice beginning to break as she finally let herself pull away from him.

His face seemed normal enough, but he looked so _tired_, every feature screamed defeat even as he took in the golden beauty in front of him.

"I know, but we're not out of the woods with that quite _yet_...you shouldn't have come here, Yang."

Disregarding his warning, she merely looked around at the small space they were in.

"Um...where _is_ 'here'?"

The young man sighed, at least of exhaustion.

"Not sure how you did it, but you're now in my head. Welcome to my place, Lil' Sun Dragon. Or what's left of it, thanks to recent events..." He stopped his contemptuous revision of his surroundings to turn back to the blonde with curiosity, "but really, how _did_ you get here?"

Davin now got up, helping up the brawler next to him who nervously looked down at her boots. Even then, she couldn't help noticing the feeling that the space around them seemed smaller...was it shrinking?

"I uh..." She began with uncharacteristic meekness, "I did what I did when I unlocked your aura the first time... I just did what came natural, really..."

The young man's eyes widened slightly in fatigued alarm.

"Yaaang..." It sounded more like a tired sigh than a stern reprimand, "you've reconnected our auras!? You have _no idea_ how much danger you've exposed yourself to!"

The brawler blinked a few times at the unexpected reaction.

"What are you talking about, Vin?"

"Yang, by re-establishing our connection, you've managed to access my remaining consciousness, yes, but you've _also_ exposed yourself to Darovit's aura! The corruption can now just as easily pass on to you too and trigger the Turning in your body! Heck..." He seemed to calm down a bit as he looked her up and down, "I'm surprised it didn't do so when you first got in here..."

"Darovit? Who's that?"

"The Grimm general who's trying to gain immortality and control Remnant, obviously."

She raised an eyebrow, "How'd you know that?"

"He infused me with his aura," the young man replied, "which gave me a glimpse into his thoughts, memories and motives...didn't take too long to put two and two together."

He then pointed at his ear.

"...and I still have Cipher's earpiece in me. I've been catching bits and pieces of what's been going on, too."

"Only pieces?" Yang asked with worry, to which the young man only lowered his head in dejection.

"Yea. I'm losing this fight, Yang. Lost my senses already, and all I can do now is catch the occasional view of the world around me through all of _this_," he motioned upward contemptuously again with his hand, "and it hasn't been too pretty. I've helped the Grimm do bad things, babe. I _destroyed_ half of Beacon, I hurt my _friends_..." His voice trailed off as he looked up at Yang, eyes wide in realization.

"Ohmygosh, Yang! _You!_" He took her in his arms and checked everywhere he could see for injuries, "Are you okay? Did I hurt you!?"

She lightly pushed him back as she began to chuckle.

"Seriously dude, not a chance. You just had _your_ butt handed to you on a golden platter, courtesy from _moi!_"

"...on your own?" He asked with a raised brow.

"Yep. Planned it out and everything!"

To her pleasant surprise, the young man grinned for the first time for what felt like ages, making her insides flutter with hope.

"So you're saying...I'm dating a _genius_."

"Yep!" She replied with a grin, "You got _that_ right! I'm a real catch, the _best_ you'll ever find!" Yang winked at the young man who only smirked at her antics.

But his smirk faded as he looked up and realized how small their dome of clear air had become. Yang followed suit with a similar reaction.

"Whoa! Vin, we have less than half as much room as we did before...what's going on?"

The tried expression returning, he now scowled at the walls of black fog that were slowly closing in on them.

"This bubble we're standing in is what's left of me, Yang...the rest out there is all _him_. And we're running out of time, I can barely push my body to stop the damage it's causing anymore..."

Yang walked up to him, calling his attention to herself as she put a hand on his shoulder and tiptoed to kiss his cheek.

"Vin, you were able to control it long enough to save _me_. Twice. So thank you."

The expression on his face, however, was only of hurt as she locked eyes with him again, his head shaking softly in denial.

"But what good is it if we're _both_ now about to be lost to the Turning! Yang..._why_ did you come here..."

The brawler scoffed, smiling confidently as she took the now surprised young man in her arms and kept her eyes on his.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm bustin ya outta here!"

"Wha-?"

"Hang on!"

And with fiery golden aura surrounding them both, the brawler took off, lifting the young man through the thick darkness around them as it took over what was left of the bubble below them.

Yang soared with blazing strength through the black clouds with her aura like the comet she was when she went in, but this time it now felt like she was trying to go against the current.

"We're slowing!" Davin called out as the darkness began trying to force its way into the brawler's resolve.

"Nuh-uh! Didn't come all this way to turn into some kind of zombie!"

The pair's ascent continued, but still slowed as Yang tried to find a way through the darkness. Her first pang of doubt finally hit as the young man caught her attention.

"Yang!"

She glanced at him to see his eyes beginning to cloud over in black, and in desperation could only tell herself to go on.

"Just hang on! Only a little longer!"

Reduced to a battle of will, the brawler fought her way up the dense black fog that seemed to tie itself around her withering aura like lead weights. But what now caught Davin's attention were the signs of the corruption winning. Her tired expression as she struggled to keep moving upwards, the perspiration on her temple. The couple now stopped their ascent.

Holding the brawler tightly by her shoulders, he was now struck with an idea. No matter what, he at least had to get _her_ out of this.

"Together, Yang! There's a reason you were able to come here, and there has to be a way to get us out!" He looked her in the eyes as the darkness fought its way through the last of her fiery aura, "Together."

With a final push, both Yang and Davin now _willed_ their power outwards, generating a new blast of golden aura along with a black aura that now began to turn orchid.

Grabbing each other's hands, Davin and Yang yelled as their combined golden-orchid aura ignited, flashing everything in white.

* * *

As strange as Yang had felt going into Davin's mind, she felt just as strange as she now felt a weird pulling feeling coming out, as if being pulled from a dream.

Which in fact, she was. By Glynda.

The pair of Hunters had finally fought their way through the last of the central ranks of Grimm and Paladins, and had unknowingly passed the fight between the rest of team RWBY and the dark Faunus as they hastily made their way towards a yelling Yang near the side of the ruins.

Glynda got to the brawler just as the blonde fell back limp while the Headmaster quickly checked on Davin.

"Ozpin..." The Huntress began with uncertainty, "Ozpin! Her eyes!"

The Professor turned to see Glynda lifting Yang's eyelid, revealing a black orb underneath.

"Miss Xiao Long! Miss Xiao Long!?" Miss Goodwitch now resorted to shaking the student, "_Yang!_"

_SLAP!_

"Glynda!"

But with a gasp, the blonde brawler's eyes fluttered open, the darkness dissipating from them as she suddenly bolted up wide awake.

Shocked at her recovery, Ozpin had to know what had happened as he surveyed the utter destruction of the landscape around him.

"Miss Xiao Long, what happened? Did you attempt to connect with Mister Rosfield's aura?" When she nodded in response, he turned to look at his partner.

"I'll need your remaining crystals, please."

The Huntress' eyes widened, "Ozpin, you _can't_ be serious!"

"We _must_ try!"

Handing him the crystals she had left, Glynda watched as the Headmaster crushed them with his bare hands, infusing his own aura into the powder to stabilize the mix and grinding it into the young man's exposed chest with a determined yell, causing Davin's pale form to lurch forward without further reaction.

"Come on, Vin!" Yang cried out desperately as she ran over beside his motionless body. Nothing was happening.

Ozpin now stood up to leave her alone with him.

"I'm so sorry, Yang..."

"NO!" She cried out as the first tears made their way out of her lilac eyes, "Don't you _dare_ say that! He's still in there, I _saw_ him!"

Both Ozpin and Glynda felt her pain. They had felt it in those very ruins so long ago as they walked away from the battle that turned the war, each in each other's arms as they were even now, looking at the grieving brawler, still cursed to relive that pain of losing friends for centuries more.

But as the blonde continued in her efforts to revive him, she didn't even realize her aura begin glowing around her, tendrils of her flames cascading over his body.

"Come on, Vin! _Why_ do you keep making me say these things!" Yang now angrily whispered at his limp form, "I _love_ you, okay? And I can't lose you! So you better _fight_ it, you big, dumb, dummy!" Another moment passed without reaction.

...And to her infinite relief, the young man finally gasped and opened his eyes.

The Professors gawked at the young man as they and Yang saw the eerie red glow being pushed back in his eyes by a ring of orchid aura, leaving Davin with red irises as he slowly got up.

"Y-Yang...?"

"I _KNEW_ IT!" She finally cried out in glee as she gripped him in a hug so tight it would've hurt Ruby's back just to watch.

"Impossible..." It was now Glynda who stated it as she stared at the grinning young man with an incredulous smile of her own.

"Welcome back, Mister Rosfield," Ozpin finally stated with joy before suddenly approaching the young man and leaning close to him with curiosity, "You have...blood red eyes..."

_WHACK!_

Glynda smacked his arm with her riding crop as she glared at him disapprovingly.

He shrugged as he returned to her side, "Don't mind _her_...this is a victory unlike any other, I assure you."

"Hardly," the young man suddenly stated, the red in his eyes flashing as he walked up to the Professors with Yang beside him, "I'm still under Darovit's control, though I've managed to hold it back with Yang's help. But it's only _temporary_."

"What?" The three others asked in unison.

"That's right." Davin continued, "I'll need to _end_ him to get out of this, and at the rate he's going, doing that'll only get more difficult if he keeps up the sheer amounts of Grimm he's controlling coming at everyone!"

"Controlling!?" Yang echoed in disbelief.

"Yes, but look, there's much to explain in short time. He's channelling all ambient dark energy through his aura to control the Grimm...but the flip side is that in doing so, he's weaker and unable to defend himself as well. Me and the big Faunus leader were charged with guarding him in the meantime...speaking of which, where is the other guy?"

Yang took a moment to think.

"You mean Crudus? He was with you until we split you both up!" The brawler recalled pensively, "but now that I think of it...I still find it hard to believe he was a White Fang _leader_. I'm not even sure he's a _Faunus!_"

"Of _course_ he's a Faunus." Davin replied matter-of-factly, "He's a _puma_."

"A what."

Davin sighed, "Ask Blake..."

"Well then, Mister Rosfield, what is your plan in regards to the Grimm leader?" Miss Goodwitch finally asked, having watched the back-and-forth between the couple beside her partner with some amusement.

He seemed to go over something in his mind, as if recalling previously organized ideas.

"Good question, Miss Goodwitch. Now that I have you both here, and with your previous..._familiarity_...with the ruins, I'll need you both to find him. But do _not_ engage."

"No?" The Headmaster asked with an almost challenging undertone.

"_No_. I made a promise. He came out, hurt my friends, and threatened my home. I am going to end him _myself_." The young man replied resolutely, but added enigmatically with a raised brow, "besides, I don't think _Darovit_ was ever your main concern..."

The Professor and his partner immediately understood.

"Indeed it wasn't," Ozpin replied cooly with a small smirk, "and you're sure it's _him?_"

"Absolutely. Which only raises more questions than it answers."

Yang just blinked in confusion at the conversation happening in front of her. Clearly, they all knew something she didn't.

"Very well," the Huntress now answered, "we will find him and relay his position to you when we do. Just...please avoid dying in the meantime." She added with a rare smirk.

Glynda and her partner really _were_ glad to have him back. The young man seemed so familiar to them, though the Headmaster had to be sure that it wasn't just _familiarity_.

Ozpin had begun to study the young man again as he had done during Davin's occasional visits to his office, and finally reaching a conclusion sighed and smiled as he spoke up to the young man.

"You are both so alike..."

The young man actually seemed to pick up on the meaning as his eyes lit up in realization.

"But I'm _not_ him...aren't I."

"No," the Headmaster shook his head slowly, "but with all the likenesses, I don't doubt there's a relation. I can only wish you the best in recovering what you've lost, Davin."

Turning to enter the ruins with his partner, Ozpin and Glynda disappeared as the Huntress cast a distortion glyph over them with her riding crop.

"What on Remnant was _that_ about?" The confused blonde asked her partner outside the ruins as they walked by the edge of the clearing.

"My memories." The young man replied as he kept walking forward, "though apparently not _all_ of them are mine, per say. But that's beside the point. Right now we need to get in contact with our people."

"How? None of us know how to use Cipher's stinkin' earpieces!" Yang stated with a huff.

Davin raised an eyebrow at her, "Seriously?"

Putting his hand up to the side of his head, he placed two fingers on his temple, activating the earpiece.

"Teams RWBY, JNPR and VNDS. Fall back to rendezvous one click east of the ruins by the edge of the clearing as soon as possible to regroup for enemy takedown. I repeat, fall back to rendezvous point."

'_And who the DUST is this!?_' Sun's voice came through the line, the sounds of heavy battle coming through the background.

The young man grinned mischievously.

"This is DAVIN, you banana-eating, no-good stowaway! And I'm _back!_"

Cheering resounded through the several connected lines as the young man took his fingers off his temple and turned to the blonde next to him who wore a mildly impressed expression.

"See? Didn't take too long to figure out," he began with a mischievous smirk, "keep up, Yang. Keep up."

She mockingly punched him in the arm as they waited for their teams to arrive.

* * *

"Did you hear that?" Blake shouted as she dodged yet another chainsaw slash from the furious dark faunus, "Yang got him back!"

"I _knew_ she could do it!" Ruby replied joyfully as she landed after pelting Crudus from the air with a barrage of sniper shots, then turned to her snowy-haired partner, who shrugged non-chalantly.

"Good, I was beginning to get bored of stalling this lumberjacking buffoon."

"Then I think it's time we end this, Weiss! Ice Flower!"

"_I think you're sadly mistaken, lil red!_" Crudus growled as he got up after recovering from the bullet impacts, readying his weapon to strike.

"Well think _again_, bub." Blake retorted as she jumped in front of him and went at him blade-to-saw.

The brief exchange of clashing metal gave the icy red duo time to set up their glyph-enhanced scy-fle attack, the crimsonette now calling out as the weapon was now loaded and ready.

"Blake! Now!"

And riposting a final chainsaw-strike with Gambol Shroud, the catgirl now shadow-jumped away to her teammates, leaving a dark rocky copy of herself behind just in time to avoid the slash from Crudus.

Hitting the brittle dark shadow of Blake instead of the real one, Crudus staggered back as the rocky copy exploded into a cloud of coarse dust from the impact.

"Light him up!" The raven-haired girl cried out fiercely.

_BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!..._

The icy sniper shots rained on the dark faunus through the dust cloud mercilessly, the red leader now turning to her partner with a casual smirk.

"Wanna bring up the heat? You know, to shake things up a bit!"

The heiress shrugged as the shots continued.

"Meh. I suppose."

The rapier and glyph now turning red, Myrtenaster began to set each bullet on fire as Crescent Rose continued its onslaught, finally blowing Crudus away with the myriad of fiery projectiles.

"Alright Teeeam RWBY!" Ruby yelled, satisfied with their execution of battle tactic, "let's go find Vin and Yang!"

It didn't take long for the trio to spot the rendezvous point, the location was lit up with subsequent flashes of orchid and gold as the gauntlet-wielding duo laid waste to the Grimm around them.

"Over there!" Weiss called out as the team fought their way to them around dark creatures of all shapes and sizes.

When they finally neared the rendezvous location, they found Davin and Yang waiting along with the rest of teams JNPR and VNDS who had just finished welcoming their returned friend. They could see Sun playfully punching him as he relayed his final comment.

"And for the record, I'm a _great_ stowaway!"

"Good to have you back, Vin," Blake commented smiling as she and her partners joined the group.

"Thanks, Bla-OOF!" The young man didn't get a chance to finish due to the sudden bear-hug from the elated crimsonette, "Grk! Ruby! Good to see you, too!"

He finally recovered as she let go.

"...you hug like your sister, Rubes."

"Well _you_ don't get to complain!" The red leader remarked as she pouted adorably, "we thought we lost you..."

"Yea well you _didn't_, and you can thank Yang for that...I'm pretty sure she would've beaten me into a pulp if I did..."

"I _did_ beat you into a pulp." The brawler stated triumphantly, causing several amused brows to be raised at Davin.

"Uh huh. _So_ doesn't count, I was practically brain dead!"

The brawler feigned offense, "Whaaa-? And I thought our third date went so _well_, I even got to use _these!_" and with a devious grin, she then pulled out the cuffs from her pouch for all to see.

"Uhh...you did what?" Davin now asked, blushing with a shade of red almost as deep as the Spartan's. Yang continued to revel in the return of the antics in which she hadn't engaged for too long.

"Oh, I can give _you_ a full replay later, Vin!" She began with a mischievous wink which only made him blush more, "But I was fortunate enough to swipe _these_ puppies from Pyrrha! She was actually planning to use them on- HEY!"

The brawler was interrupted by the _very_ miffed Spartan's sudden use of her semblance, magnetically yanking the cuffs out of Yang's hand and bringing them to the hers before securing them safely behind the bronze emblem on her hip.

"_Soooo_..." Jaune now began loudly before anything else could happen, "what's the plan, Vin?"

Regaining his composure, Davin began, "Right. I see our forces have been pushing towards the ruins, which is good. But they're only putting themselves in more danger the closer they get to Landfall. Guys, this isn't just battle anymore. This has become all-out _war_. We _need_ to lure the Grimm general out as soon as possible."

"Why?" Ruby asked, slightly confused.

"Because Darovit, that's the name of the Grimm general that tried to turn me, is _controlling_ the rest of the Grimm. And the longer he's untouched, the more Grimm he can bring in. You think these hordes of a few hundred creatures were it? Try an army of _thousands_, and they're-"

_BOOM! CRASH!_

Jaune finished the thought for Davin as the forest practically began coming to life.

"...and they're probably on their way?" The knight asked as the students readied their weapons.

"Yep."

And suddenly, the treeline erupted with hundreds more Grimm all around the clearing, essentially surrounding Beacon's forces as several Goliaths and King Taijitus now joined the fray. One such snake-like Grimm crashed through the group of students, separating Davin and Jaune from the rest of their teams as the other students now faced an entire pack of Ursae Rex that forced them back towards the ruins.

"Oh that thing is _big!_" Davin stated as the giant serpent let out an ear-curdling roar.

"Yea, I bet you're missing _this_ guy right about now..." Jaune mentioned with a smirk as he threw Starkillers at the relieved young man.

"Nice!"

And without further hesitation, the young man launched himself at the giant serpent's black head...only to be smashed on the side into a tree trunk by the quick strike of the white head.

"Two heads, Vin. I should've told you that."

"Owww..."

Both heads now focusing on him, the knight was about to unsheath Crocea Mors when all of a sudden both heads were blown off by dual powerful beam weapon blasts.

"_Die_, you bloody wankers!"

Jaune turned in shock to see the cryptic in his iron suit carrying pieces of a blue and green android. Both shoulder-mounted rail guns were smoking at their ends while the facemask came up around Cipher's helmet, revealing his current state of mourning.

"Mamma mia! They killed Luigi, mate!"

"I'm sorry, Cipher..." Jaune replied as he put his hand on the grieving hacker's shoulder.

"He was such a good bot, if only I could've been there sooner...Ah well, I'll build another one." Jaune recalled that the cryptic had the shortest grieving period in all of Remnant as the hacker now let the pieces drop to the ground.

But suddenly reminded of his fellow fighter, the knight turned to the trees.

"Vin!"

Running over to the warped and broken pile of wood, they saw the young man struggling to get up.

"My back..."

"Ohmygosh! Is it broken!?" The knight cried out in worry.

"_No_, dude." Davin retorted as he finally stood up, "it's acting up. I'm now pretty sure that Yang put a knee to my spine back at Landfall."

"Wow...so she really _did_ beat you into a pulp..."

"Shut up."

Jaune chuckled as the young man hunched over comically, trying to wave off the knight's previous remark.

"Oi, you won't last too long out there with a bad back, ol' chap." Cipher stated as he helped Davin straighten out.

"I know, I won't heal fast enough on my own...where's Velvet?"

The knight and cryptic turned to see the healer slicing through giant Grimm in the distance before responding in unison.

"Busy."

"I should probably go lend a hand..." Cipher now stated before his facemask fell shut and he blasted off to the students' aid. The young man sighed in frustration.

"Just _peachy_."

"Wait!" Jaune replied, hastily struck by an idea, "I remember reading about speed healing when large quantities of aura are available!"

Pulling out the little black book without thinking, he pumped his aura into it and flipped through the pages, finding the page and handing it to the young man.

"...Here! If anyone can do it, it's _us_, Vin! Hurry!"

The young man's brows furrowed as he began flipping through the pages himself, "Jaune, they're blank...well, other than the two-liner on the first page..."

"Oh, my bad," Jaune began hurriedly as the young man's eyes began to narrow at what the lines meant - a way to finally purge all doubt of who he was, "I guess the aura effect wears off quicker than I thought! You see, only an _Arc_ can...read...it..."

Jaune's voice trailed off in utter stupefaction as he saw the young man now flare out his orchid aura and pump it into the book, making the words reappear on the pages.

"Oh, here it is, right before the Aural Aerodynamics chapter. Thanks, Jaune."

The knight was speechless at the casual response as the young man's aura promptly flowed around his back, thickening near the spine as the two young fighters winced at the sound of bones being reset with loud _cracks_.

"Vin...h-how?"

Now engrossed in the next chapter in the little black book, Davin didn't even bother to respond as a certain ability caught his eye.

"Now _that_ is interesting..."

"Vin, _how_." The white knight persisted before snatching the book out of Davin's hands, who still didn't seem to hear the question.

"Hey! Well _fine_, the book's yours, after all..."

Davin turned to go join the rest of his group before a wall of blazing white aura forced him to stop.

"_HOW!_"

With his back to the knight, the name on the memorial gravestone passed through Davin's mind, who merely placed both hands behind his back before turning to face his questioner with specifically chosen words.

"C'mon, Jaune... Let's just go. We have straight shot to the ruins. I can't make this final run without you."

The blue-eyed leader winced at the familiar words, recalling the other man who once spoke them in his dreams. _Their_ dreams. Whatever.

"Not until you explain yourself, Rosfield."

"...Will you come with me if I do?"

"Of _course_..." The knight stated as his features softened, "our friends are there, and I trust you with my _life_, Vin. Just _please_ answer the question."

The young man let out a long sigh.

"Isn't it obvious?" He stated as he casually raised his arms to his sides and looked the white knight in the eyes, "Rosfield was my _mother's_ maiden name, Jaune..."

The white knight's eyes began to widen in realization.

"Jaune...I'm an _Arc_."

* * *

**_TO BE CONTINUED...IN THE VOLUME FINALE..._**

* * *

**A/N: Plot Twist! Eh? Eh? :D The action is still building, so I really hope you enjoy the climax and finale of The Valean War, which is conveniently the name of the final chapter of Volume 1 :)**

**So stay tuned as the _actual_ finale is already in the works! It will be about as long as this chapter as well ;) so...**

**Happy Reading!**

**EDIT: As a side note, to the guest who requested being able to copy the story to read offline on an iPod...sure, why not. :) **


	43. Vol 1-41: The Valean War

**A/N: So this is definitely the longest chapter I've ever written... O.o and it took a while too! Even though this is pretty much how I saw TVW ending from the beginning, I dunno...I guess I had to get into the right emotional state to write certain bits of it. Which wasn't easy :/**

**It's a bit like Inception, to create a convincing dream, at times you must draw from memories (or emotions you've experienced). So yea, I hope you like it! Easter egg for the Metroid gamers out there ;)**

**The Volume 1 Finale starts now!**

* * *

"So we're _related!_ Are we cousins?"

"I don't know."

"We don't look alike...how far back do you think the link goes?"

"I don't know."

The two Arcs were now blazing their way through the charging hordes of Grimm straight to their friends, who were surrounded near the ruins with the rest of Beacon's army and Cipher's forces by masses of the dark creatures.

"Do you think Ozpin would know?"

"I don't _know_, Jaune," the young man replied, his eyes flashing red before suddenly hearing a threatening _hiss_, "Watch your left!"

The knight spun sideways into the air to dodge a King Taijitu strike, turning himself in mid-air as he filled Crocea Mors with aura to decapitate the white snakehead with a downwards energy slash.

Landing next to Davin as each fighter continued their sprint, the knight now turned to his peer.

"Vin, on your right!"

Dashing forward in a burst of lightning to outrun the black head's snapping fangs, Davin turned and swung his arm down as his momentum continued carrying him skidding backwards to smash the serpent's head into the ground telekinetically, after which he forcefully threw Starkillers right between its eyes as he finally came to a stop.

Letting Jaune catch up to him, both students continued their sprint again as Davin held his hand behind him, mentally recalling the hilt of his energy-saber to his possession and stashing it in the Trace.

"I _really_ hope Ozpin and Glynda find the General soon..."

Finally jumping over a few more rows of charging Ursae, the two leaders landed in the space that their teams and peers were desperately defending. The green-haired professor spotted them first.

"Mister Arc! You've managed to join us! Fantastic! And Mister Rosfield! You're still alive! Absolutely excellent!"

The young man merely stared at the weapon.

"Umm, Professor Oobleck, isn't that your _thermos?_"

"_Doctor_." He corrected pointedly, "and of course it is! Sir Micael Bay has been my loyal companion through many a battle! You...really don't remember my using it against you?"

Davin scoffed, "Memory and I have never really been on good terms..."

Now looking over the rest of the students and forces holding back the incoming Grimm while Oobleck got back to business, Davin and Jaune gauged their shrinking odds of victory as the cryptic approached them.

"The Grimm came out of nowhere!" The iron hacker called out, "hundreds more of 'em! We're gonna be dog's dinner if we can't get reinforcements!"

Jaune looked over at the nearby crimsonette as she sliced and diced a pack of incoming Beowolves with a rapidly spinning Crescent Rose.

"Ruby! What happened with the High Council?"

Finding her reprieve as she dispatched the last creature with a sniper shot, she frantically looked over at her fellow leader.

"We don't know! Our transmission was never able to get through! Jaune...we don't have any more backup!"

The dire news barely had time to sink in as the several dozen remaining fighters were now pelted with an air strike of giant black feathers from above. Davin looked up and noticed an entire flock of Nevermores approaching the dwindling airship fleet above them.

"Oh my dust..."

"No! Not you too, Doughnut!" Cipher shouted in despair before running over and kneeling beside a motionless android in full pink battle armor that had gotten pierced through with a Nevermore feather, "Jaune! I've only got about a dozen bots left! We've got to do somethin'!"

The knight turned to the red leader, "Ruby, what's the situation on our teams?"

She responded quickly, "Not good, Jaune, Blake's been beat up pretty bad, Ren's about to pass out from exhaustion, and Velvet's running around trying to heal more people than she can handle! And the rest of us are low on ammo!"

Things didn't look good, and Jaune noticed the perimeter around them was indeed shrinking around the tired fighters who had been at it all day. But in the middle of the sounds of heated battle, growls, gunshots and yells...

"I know what I need to do."

Davin and Ruby followed the resolute knight as he sprinted to the monkey-faunus who was fighting alongside May, Seul and the rest of their teams. And reaching out with his white aura, Jaune let it flicker against Sun and Blake, promptly flashing a pale yellow and dark grey as he replicated their Semblances.

"Jaune, what are you doing." The young man asked as he saw a glint in the knight's eye that only hinted at the scale of the plan hatching in his mind.

"Come with me."

Ruby looked between her team and her fellow leaders who went to the center of the shrinking perimeter as yet another horde of Grimm came charging their section of the battle.

"Jaune! What about the rest of us?"

"Go!" Cipher shouted as he suddenly appeared, "Seul and I can handle the beasties!" And with four mecha-shifted machine gun barrels protruding from each metallic forearm, the iron cryptic went to work on the mass of Grimm along with alternating repulsor blasts from his shoulder-mounted cannons.

"But _Cy-!_" May began as she sliced through a few more Beowolves with her electrical semblance through her lethal silk whips.

"He said we _got_ it!" Seul cut in angrily, slashing through several more creatures with an air-blade strike without even turning to look at the group. The three teams and May finally joined Davin and Jaune in the middle of the perimeter when Oobleck and Port joined the Dorme warriors as well.

"Jaune, what are you doing!" Pyrrha's cried out as she approached her knight who was struggling with his aura while the young man tried what he could to help.

"I gotta try, Vin!" Jaune shouted in frustration, "but they're so many, and I can't call out my aura's abilities as easily as you!"

Davin now grabbed the white knight by his shoulders and looked him in the eyes as the three teams surrounded them.

"_Jaune_. You can do this. If you said you could handle dozens of projections then you can surely handle _this_."

"Not the same thing!" The knight growled in response, but the young man was undeterred.

"Then let me tell you how I do it. Kicking my brain to overdrive. So do as I say..." The young man's eyes flashed red again as his voice gained intensity, the knight now closing his eyes as he waited for instruction.

"Clear your head, focus on the ability..."

Jaune nodded.

"Take a deep breath..."

Another nod.

"..._Now execute_."

Davin and the others now stepped back as the knight opened his eyes, the blue in them now blazing white as he began to glow with pure power. As wind started to blow around the students in powerful gusts, the Spartan turned to the young man with alarm.

"What is happening!?"

Tendrils of white electricity appeared around the white knight as the wind ruffled his hair and hoodie, the force of an invisible power now palpable in the very air.

Davin let out in awe, "I... think he's just accessed his entire aura reserves."

And with a yell louder than ten men, the knight threw his arms up toward the enemies as he began to levitate in a swirl of white energy, releasing dozens upon dozens of white aura-projected clones each with the speed of Blake's shadow-clones hurdling over the students to attack the Grimm hordes surrounding them.

Each clone armed with a blade of their own, they cast out savage attacks of water, lighting and ice to the Grimm around them as they slashed through even more with their blades, others of them exploding upon contact with impressively damaging results.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me!" Weiss cried out, not caring to mask the apparent awe in her voice anymore.

Witnessing one such clone slice clean through an Ursa Rex that threatened to kill him and his team with a powerful air-blade strike, even Cardin, who was heavily stained with the gore of battle, had to turn to smirk at the glowing knight with gratitude.

"Saved from an Ursa _again?_ Holy crap, Jaune!"

Now watching as increasing numbers of Grimm fell to the full power of the white knight's mighty semblance, Davin shouted to rile the remaining students who stood staring in awe at the event back into action.

"Students of Beacon! Warriors of Dorme! The Grimm are only as strong as the darkness and fear they manifest in our hearts! _We_ are the ones with the true power, so let the Arc lead the way as we turn the tides of battle! ..._I ask of you now, charge with us to victory!_"

A booming war cry resounded in the valley as the fighters resumed their onslaught with renewed vigor, the students actually pushing back at the Grimm lines as hundreds of Arc copies blazed the way.

Only teams RWBY, JNPR, VNDS and May remained in the center of the growing perimeter as Jaune remained in his state of semblance. The younger Arc smiled sweetly at her brother as a single tear of joy ran down her eye.

"You're crazy, big brother...dad would be so proud!" And without another word, nodded at her peers and sped off to aid her fellow Dorme forces.

Ruby and her team approached the young man who after finishing his brief speech hadn't stopped staring up. Ruby tried to get his attention first.

"Nice speech, Vin! What should we do now?"

No response from the young man.

"Uhh, Vin..." Yang began with a quizzical expression at her boyfriend, "aaare you okay, or are ya gonna keep weirding us out like that?"

Without moving his head, he merely pointed up, "Look."

And the students now noticed the fierce battle was also taking place in the sky, large groups of Nevermores picking away at the small remaining fleet of less than a dozen airships. They all winced as two more airships were destroyed and fell out of the sky before Davin continued.

"It's not looking good up there, guys. Neptune may be in real trouble soon..." He looked back at his peers, "Ruby, you and your team should find a way to get the injured to safety. _Away_ from here. Sun, you and Velvet should join them. Pyrrha..."

The young man glanced pointedly at the glowing knight who was still levitating in a powerful state of aural stasis. The Spartan immediately understood.

"Yes, Ren, Nora and I shall protect Jaune."

"But what a bout _you?_" Sun asked the young man, who had already begun to stare up again.

Yang now took a longer glance at Davin. The effects of the Turning had left him pale, yes, but this was different...Davin was beginning to sweat, beads of perspiration appearing on his temple.

But what was getting to him was that he knew what he was about to have to do. It could've been _anything_ else and he would've thrown himself into it headlong, but heights...oh, _why_ did it have to be _heights?_ Not even Yang knew about his inexplicable fear, only Seul, who he had told after rejecting his leaping lesson at Flynn's Arcade their first night at Dorme.

"Viiin..." The brawler now asked inquisitively, "what are you thinking?"

"Well..." He began slowly after gulping, "_someone_ has to get up there and help him..."

"Uh, _how_," the catgirl replied, "they're well out of our weapon's range, and despite our improved leaping abilities, none of us can reach _that_ high. It's impossible."

"I dunno, I really don't think we can assume what impossible _is_ anymore," the stoic now unexpectedly began as he pointed at his leader, "after all, Jaune _did_ just practically go 'god-mode' on us..."

"Exactly, thank you Ren."

"...Not that I'm saying you could _top_ that, though."

The young man looked back at the stoic with a smirk and raised brow as if he had just been challenged. He snickered before turning his gaze back up.

"Mehhh, you'd be _surprised_. I was recently enlightened about our auras' common ability to manipulate air currents, much like our friend Seul..."

His fear now placed in the back-burner with the prospect of proving Ren wrong, the young man didn't shift his upward gaze as he now crouched on one knee with his opposite hand on the floor.

Davin had been challenged, and he liked meeting challenges.

"Wait a minute, are you _saying_..." Weiss began slowly as the students saw wind, dust and small rocks begin spiraling towards the young man's feet.

"That's right, Lady..." he said with the smallest of smirks across his face before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

"...just try not to freak out."

_CRUNCH!_

The floor underneath him caved in slightly from the force to form a crater as he took off, the young man creating a sonic boom as he sped up a few hundred meters above the forest floor to go straight _through_ the first Nevermore he encountered which promptly fell out of the sky, dissolving into smoke before even reaching the ground.

Each student looked up, their mouths in an 'O' of shock. Blake was the first one to speak up to the speechless heiress, glancing between Jaune and Davin.

"Who needs to spy on the visiting competition for the Vytal Tournament when we've got _these_ two in our own backyard?"

Quickly regaining her composure, Weiss responded with her customary unimpressed expression.

"Tch, you _still_ can't prove that!"

"C'mon, guys. We've got a job to do," Ruby now stated as they watched the young man take the fight to the skies, "Sun, you and Velvet can take the rear while we find a way to get the injured out of this fight."

The two faunus teammates nodded as they then left the growing perimeter and team JNPR stayed to stand guard over the knight.

* * *

"You're kidding me. You _gotta_ be kidding me, right? ADA, do you _see_ what I'm seeing right now!?"

'_Why yes I do! According to my readings, the aural energy signature belongs to a Mister Davin Rosfield, student and team leader at Beacon Academy! Who also seems to be flying!'_

Neptune stared out of the cockpit as the ever-enthusiastic female AI of the airship spoke, now narrowing his eyes in disbelief.

"I know _that_..." He replied gruffly before clarifying, "But he's still wearing my _jacket!_"

Davin was flying through the air, dispatching bird after bird of the giant Grimm in front of the remaining airships that were struggling to stay in formation. Now powering up Starkillers, he flew over one such dark bird of prey and sliced its wing off in mid-flight, turning in midair to detach the other half of his energy-saber and flinging it as a spinning energy disk towards another Nevermore headed right to a neighboring airship.

Landing on a third winged Grimm's back, he lifted his half of Starkillers and drove the beam of light into the back of its skull while the other spinning half of his weapon decapitated the previous bird before it could ram the other airship to destruction, now jumping off the stabbed bird's back and catching the other spinning half of his weapon behind him before landing on the hull of ADA.

_Knock, knock._

The metallic knocks on the hull were followed by the muffled command from outside the airship.

"Open up!"

"_Wait_...how do I know you're on _our_ side now?"

The young man's head popped down from the top of the cockpit window, a brow raised in question.

"Seriously, dude?"

Considering what he had just seen and recalling what he had just heard on Cipher's frequency some time ago, the blue-haired pilot deadpanned in realization.

"Oh. Right."

And opening the side door, the young man now stepped in as the fighting continued outside.

"Thanks for letting me in."

"Yea. Just return my jacket first chance you get." Neptune responded flatly, at which the young man looked down at himself.

"Huh, I didn't even realize I had this. How-" he stopped himself as he saw his teammate turn and glare at him from his pilot's seat, "onnn _second_ thought, I won't ask. But you're wearing one that looks just like it!"

The observation only made the pilot cringe as he turned to look out the cockpit again.

"Exactly! It seriously cramps my style, man!"

"_Fine_." The young man rolled his eyes...still, he had always liked the jacket ever since he first saw it.

Just then, ADA lurched in the sky from an impact, knocking the young man off balance and practically sending Neptune to the floor as a gigantic Nevermore with the size of ADA itself appeared over their field of vision and tore a nearby airship apart with its massive talons.

"Jeez!" Neptune called out as he hastily got back into his seat, "that thing is _huge!_ Thank dust it only grazed us!"

Davin, however, wasn't so content as he watched the other airship go down in flames and responded angrily, "But _they_ weren't so lucky!"

His eyes flashing a brighter red this time, he turned to leave when he was stopped by the blue-haired student's call.

"Wait! That Nevermore Major is tougher than it looks! Your weapon won't be able to pierce its hide!"

Growling under his breath, Davin took a moment to calm down before facing his teammate.

"Alright. What do _you_ suggest?"

The blue-haired student now rubbed his hands together gleefully as he glanced at a seat hanging inside a gyroscopic chamber behind him.

"Well now that you _ask_...there has been _one_ special feature I've been meaning to try...but I'll need you to man the weapons control seat while I get the airship in position!"

With curiosity getting the better of him at his teammate's excitement, Davin acquiesced as he stepped into the seat. It fell a bit under his weight as it balanced him inside the delicate structure, a joystick mecha-shifting out of his left arm-handle while a small control pad appeared on his right one, followed by a small visor on a long metal arm connected to the seat that fell over his right eye.

"_Hmm_, this is cool..." The young man mused with an impressed expression.

"Oho, just wait for it!" The pilot began with mirth as he pointed the airship in the giant Nevermore's direction, "ADA, would you pretty please activate the Phazon Dust Cannon?"

'_Experimental weapons program coming online...PDC system engaged! Acquiring new target..._'

Over their heads, the students could now hear metal shifting as a large sleek cannon emerged from the roof of their airship.

"Alright, Vin," Neptune now continued, "Position the weapon so you get that bird in your HUD!"

Davin maneuvered the joystick to do so and confirmed, "Got it!"

'_New target aquired._'

"Now center it!"

"Got it!"

'..._Target locked._'

The blue-haired student now exhaled sharply in anticipation before his final set of commands.

"Okay, Vin. You see that little red button?"

The young man looked at the button on the control pad under his right hand.

"Yea..."

"_Push_ that little red button!"

_Beep_.

'_Firing main cannon._'

The large cannon on the roof of ADA's hull now began humming as it charged up and fired a ray of a pale light-blue energy at the giant Nevermore, making the whole airship vibrate with the force of the discharging weapon.

"WHOA!" Both students shouted as the beam made impact, the steady flow of energy completely vaporizing the Nevermore Major where it flew.

"Holy _dust_, Neptune! Did you even know it could _do_ that!?"

The slack-jawed blacksmith-turned-pilot merely shook his head before regaining his composure and responding.

"Uh, n-no...but now we know! Which is good because there've only been three sightings of Nevermores this size in Vale. I heard Ruby and her team killed the first one a while back, _we_ just took out the second..."

Davin continued the thought, "So _that_ just leaves-"

_CRASH!_

The entire airship was jarred by a massive impact, losing altitude as the two occupants inside heard metal groaning and tearing above them.

"One _really_ pissed off giant bird!" Neptune cried out in alarm, "Vin, fire again!"

The young man frantically pressed the firing button repeatedly without any result as the remaining Nevermore Major continued tearing at the airship.

'_Weapon malfunction, weapon malfunction, weapon malfunction... PDC systems offline._'

"That's _it!_" Davin now growled as he jumped out of his seat, his eyes clouding over in black and voice deepening with his dark aura's presence, "_Playtime's OVER_."

Without waiting for the side ramp to come down, the young man crashed out of the side of ADA and flew up to the roof to engage the massive bird of prey in midair. Without using Starkillers, he used his darkening aura to create two black gauntlets around his forearms and with a crushing one-two combo managed to get the Nevermore off the airship.

He was about to go in for another attack when the bird swept its wings at him, knocking his trajectory through the air off-course as several giant feathers with sharpened serrated tips came flying at him.

"_AARGH!_" Davin clutched at his side where a black feathery projectile had grazed him, drawing blood and slicing through the band of the armored harness he wore which now hung loosely off his body.

This time, the young man's eyes flashed red and stayed red, the eerie glow overpowering the black aura that was already there as his gauntlets dissipated from his arms.

"_DIE!_" The savage shout rang out through the air as black aura cascaded around the young man's body, who now held his arms out at the incoming Nevermore and telekinetically _tore_ the massive winged Grimm in half with nauseating gurgling _cracks_.

"_Jeez_, Vin..." Neptune eked out wide-eyed as he watched the enraged young man turn in midair and mentally throw each half of the Nevermore Major to the last two Nevermores in the air, impaling the smaller birds with the larger halves of the carcass with beak and talons as the remaining ships shot down the two heaps of feathers for good measure.

The young man's rage, however, was proving more difficult to quell than he realized. Something was beginning to go wrong. As he hovered in midair while ADA passed unharmed below him, he looked down at his damaged armor harness and tore it off with a growl.

"_Useless_..."

But before he could throw it, he caught himself as his rage subsided and held on to the golden medallion, stashing the disc which bore his emblem in a pocket of his tattered jacket as he let the rest of the harness fall.

He was about to join his blue-haired teammate as the few remaining airships now turned to focus on the receding masses of Grimm when his aura suddenly faltered, his flight impaired and failing as he began to drop from the sky. And having passed him already, Neptune didn't notice his leader finally lose control and free-fall to the side of Landfall Ruins, landing with a thunderous _boom_.

* * *

"Did you hear that?" Glynda asked her silver-haired partner as they walked out of the ruins' main entryway, her distortion glyph lifting up from around them.

"Yes," the Headmaster responded as he perked up, looking around for the source of the sound, "it came from the side of the ruins..."

"Look, over there! It's Davin!"

Dashing to the young man who was struggling to get up, Ozpin helped him sit up as the Huntress tried to aid his recovery with a healing glyph. Finally opening his eyes, the professors were startled to see that the Grimm-like reddish glow had returned but held back their attack reflexes when Davin merely rubbed his temples in pain and spoke.

"Ack...what _happened?_"

The Headmaster surveyed the masses of feathers dissolving around them, a heap of a dissolving carcass of only half of what used to be a Nevermore Major especially catching his eye.

"You tell _us_..."

The Huntress blinked at their surroundings, "Mister Rosfield...did you _do_ this?"

The young man winced in pain as he finally stood up to answer, "Agh...a lot of it, yea. Gotta give credit to the airship fleet too."

"But how did _you_ do so?" Ozpin asked in curiosity.

"Aura can manipulate air currents, I have lots of aura...one thing led to the other," the young man smirked before suddenly bending over and clutching his head in pain, "JEEZ, what is _happening!_"

The young man's eyes were flashing red, receding and growing back to Grimm-like glow as his entire form began paling again. Glynda and Ozpin knew the symptoms.

"Just as I suspected," Ozpin began morosely while the Huntress prepared another healing glyph, "your augmented use of aura has sped up the Turning. You said it yourself, Miss Xiao Long' efforts to achieve your aural reprieve were but a temporary solution."

"Right..." The young man recognized, eyes shut to block out the throbbing pain, "how much time to I have left?"

"Not much. At this rate of degeneration, mental breakdown will likely reoccur well before sundown."

"Then I'll have to make it _count_."

Finally receiving Glynda's aid from the healing glyph, Davin focused his energy into putting his instincts and intuition on overdrive for one last time, the temporary surge of aura excruciatingly painful despite the glyph's effects.

"Where is he?" The young man let out in difficulty as the healing process continued.

"Well," Ozpin replied with a tinge of derision towards the subject, "we found him in a state of stasis in the central courtyard within the ruins, safely hidden behind his own forces. _Hardly_ the qualities of a true leader. But the courtyard is roof-less, which should make it easy for someone with _your_ skillset to...well, _land_ in."

Watching the pained young man beginning to yell in agony as the final effects of the glyph kicked in, the Huntress remarked, "Mister Rosfield, I highly doubt you'll be capable of engaging General Darovit in this state, much less defeat him in battle!"

But finally letting the soothing nature of the pale green glyph sink in, straightening up and opening his eyes to reveal the stable state of the Turning contained in his red irises, Davin had already decided exactly _what_ he would have to do.

He sighed deeply before speaking up decisively, "_Battle? _Heh, that creature doesn't deserve the glory of death in battle. Don't worry about _me_...I can hold it back long enough to finish the job."

"You sound like you have a plan." Ozpin keenly observed.

"I do. And it'll only work if I do it alone. You and Glynda will need to get everyone out of the valley as soon as you can, the Grimm are already close to defeat and there will be no point of risking more lives in the valley if I succeed... or if I don't. Pick them off one by one in the forests when you know the General is defeated. I will rejoin you as soon as I can."

"And how will we know?" The Huntress asked as she tried to read the young man's enigmatic expression.

"Trust me..." He replied as he finished mentally calculating every possible outcome to his impending encounter with the Grimm leader, "You'll _know_."

"Very well." Ozpin concluded as he and his partner turned to leave and join the fighting on the other side of the clearing.

'And that just leaves one thing for me to do before I go through with this...'

The young man let his internal thought simmer as he looked to his side and recognized a small stream running into the forest away from the ruins, and tracing its familiar trajectory through the trees with his keen eyesight found exactly the place he was looking for nearby. Another smaller clearing.

He then lifted two fingers to his temple.

"Yang...Yang, it's Davin. I need you to meet me in the forest as soon as you can..."

After a moment, the somewhat confused response rang through, '_Where?_'

"You know this forest like the back of your hand, right?" He said with a small smirk, "Meet me close to the clearing. The place we first kissed."

He began making his way to the destination, and just before the line went out, he heard a shrill cry squeak through his earpiece from the crimsonette.

'_You guys did WHAT?_'

* * *

It took a minute or two, but Davin was approaching the clearing. Dashing was limited, and flying was _definitely_ out of the question. He had to avoid using too much aura at once to keep the final stages of the Turning at bay.

A sing-song voice caught his attention as he entered the smaller clearing, a very familiar log and smug-faced blonde coming into view.

"Took you long enough!~ Gettin' slow on us, Vin?"

The young man chuckled weakly, "Heh, you can say that..."

"Sooo...things are looking pretty good out there," she began coyly as she held both hands behind her back and took a few steps closer to him, "was there something you wanted to tell me?"

Her smirk faded a bit as he put an arm on each of her shoulders and saw the familiar tired expression return on his features.

"Yea, Yang...um, There's something I need to do, and I don't have much time-"

"I know, I _know!_" Yang interrupted by placing a finger on his lips with an assuring grin, "It's the Turning...but we got that under control now! Look, I'm not asking you to stop, but we got the Grimm on the run... why don't we just get out of here and I'll keep clearing out the 'crazy' in you till we figure it out back at Beacon, 'kay?"

"Yang..."

"_Vin_," her proposal took on a more pleading tone as she put her hand on his cheek, "you don't _have_ to go back to face that general...so please don't. I can take care you while we find a cure..."

"Yang, there _is_ no cure." Davin stated curtly, his eyes flashing red again as he let his arms drop, "No remedy. No antidote. He and I are _connected_...unless one of us dies. And I need to make sure that the one that goes is _him_. Darovit started a process that can't be reversed, and even if you manage to clear out the effects again, which almost _killed_ you the last time, the physical process will still continue. I'm going to lose control one way or another Yang, which is why this must end _now_."

"...But _still_, it doesn't have to be that way! Viiin, you don't _have_ to be the hero... I'm not asking you to stop, just _please_ get some rest. We're going to find the answers we're looking for, but if we destroy ourselves in the process, what good _are_ we? W-What if you lose control before you can beat him?"

The young man relaxed...her persistent concern for those she cared about never failed to disarm him. He smiled as he placed his arms around her waist with a small sigh.

"Don't worry, Sunshine. Remnant already has its fair share of heroes, and believe me...I'm _not_ one of them. But as long as I hold on to the bit of aura _you've_ left in me, that's all I'll need to defeat Darovit...which I'll admit is a bit cheesy to say, but you know _me_."

Lightly chuckling, she returned his embrace by putting both her arms around his neck and gazing at him with a loving expression.

"_Fine_, I guess you're right. But Davin... I don't think I can handle you being taken away from me again..."

The young man merely let his head fall to touch his forehead with hers for a meaningful moment before lifting it to pull her in for a closer hug and cradling her head under his chin.

"Well my lil' sun dragon, I don't think there's a place I can be taken in body or soul that'd be too far for me to come back to you anymore..." He grinned as he pulled back from her a bit to continue, "No matter _what_ happens, Yang, I'll be back."

"No matter how far you go?" She asked sweetly with watery eyes.

Sensing that the question held a deeper meaning than just what applied to their current situation, Davin wiped the sole tear falling from her eye as he gave a solemn answer.

"Yeah. It may take a week, it may take a month, but if you can wait for me...I will find you."

Only the smallest smile appeared on her lips as another tear fell.

"...promise me."

The young man nodded.

She sniffled a bit before slightly shaking her head as if it weren't enough, half-heartedly smacking his chest with her hand before bringing him into another tight embrace.

"...Promise me again."

Davin fought back a knot in his throat as he responded with joyful resolution, realizing full well what it meant, "I promise."

And now lifting her chin so they could face each other, the young man and brawler grinned before leaning into each other to share a kiss, each one understanding everything left unsaid to the other at the moment of contact.

Due to that, however, the brawler failed to notice the young man slip something into the pouch on the side of her skirt-belt before they reluctantly pulled away from each other.

"Alright," Yang finally began after clearing her throat, "Go get 'em, Vin..."

With a single nod, each turned to part ways as their entwined hands slowly came apart. But remembering the three little words she had yet to say to him - while he was conscious, at least - Yang turned around only to find he had already gone airborne.

"Vin, I...*_sigh_* I hope you come back soon... I got something important to tell you..."

* * *

Davin had taken off in flight on purpose towards Landfall Ruins knowing exactly what effect it'd have on him. He could already feel the foreign presence within him beginning to stir and take over as he flew towards his destination, but he had to risk it. He had to be convincing.

Landing on a walkway on top of the front wall overlooking the central courtyard, the young man was surprised to see Crudus climbing the adjacent flight of stony stairs to join him.

'I SERIOUSLY hope the Turning has done enough for looks...'

The dark Faunus leader limped up the last few steps, studying his Grimm-eyed ally with an ominous growl. Davin didn't flinch as the chainsaw-wielder spoke up.

"_Where WERE you..._"

The faunus seemed like he was about to draw his deadly weapon before they were interrupted.

"_Calm yourselves. The time to end this petty battle has neared_."

The Grimm General now appeared on the walkway beside Davin as the three dark confederates turned to watch the raging battle in the distance. Crudus, however, seemed confused at the remark and turned to his superior.

"_The outcome does not bode well for us, General. The Arc has fully manifested and has driven back our forces to the brink of defeat!_"

"_No, failure was by design..._" The General stated, the bottom of his facemask retracting to reveal a twisted grin, "_they have made the mistake of focusing on the hordes instead of myself, and now in a few minutes I shall become the most POWERFUL being on Remnant!_"

He turned to the young man and let his red-eyed gaze linger for just a second longer than Davin would've liked before continuing...continuing as if putting him to the test.

"..._but not before a rather interesting turn of events._"

Davin wanted nothing more than to ask what he meant but knew very well he couldn't. He stood right between two incredibly powerful dark creatures who would kill him without a second's hesitation. But thankfully, the naturally curious puma-faunus on the young man's other side asked the question for him.

"_What do you mean, General Darovit?_"

The General snickered, his black fangs glistening in the late afternoon light as he turned to face the center of the battle.

"_The Arc is quite powerful...hundreds of projections fighting like trained warriors. Unprecedented, really. Yet even those of the Unbalanced have their limits...I can sense HIS approaching now..._"

Focusing his energy on his new-found relative in the distance, the young man could now sense exactly what the dark general meant...he felt along with Jaune a disturbance in his blazing white aura, a faltering which the white knight hadn't felt since his sparring match against Cardin or his first bout with an Ursa Major.

Jaune's aura was in the red.

And finally, they watched as the flickers of aura which were the knight's clones being extinguished one by one as the white orb in the center of the battle dissipated. Straining his hearing amid the sounds of battle and carnage, Davin was able to make out Pyrrha's cries of alarm as Jaune tried to recover.

"Sorry guys...I did what I could..."

"You've done more than enough! We must get you to safety!" Pyrrha. Always so caring, especially for her knight.

"_Everyone_ needs to get out now, the Grimm are coming down on us!" Ren shouted as Davin could hear Nora ushering the team and others out of the fray.

"Go! Go! Go! HIYAH!~"

And with the sound of a distant _crack_ signaling the end of yet another Grimm, the young man turned to glance at Darovit, barely able to hide his concern as the General let out a cruel laugh.

This changed everything. Davin wouldn't be able to get to his friends fast enough. He wouldn't be able to stop so many Grimm at once. People were going to die.

Grinding out his sanity in recalculating every possible outcome from where he stood, it didn't look good. But just when he thought he couldn't take it anymore, the young man's intuition finally settled on one solution. Just one, which he hoped could still be avoided. But he had to act _now_.

"_Hehe_..." The General continued with a sadistic grin at the young man beside him who clutched at his head in pain, "_yes, their time has come...and so has YOURS, Davin Arc..._"

The dark general stretched out a black glowing claw at the young man's head, expecting a swift end and aural transfer which would finally grant himself power and immortality.

Neither dark creature on either side of Davin expected the young man to reach behind himself at the last moment to pull out Starkillers from the Trace, splitting the weapon and powering each half before running the dark Faunus and General through their chests with the energy-blades.

"Yeaaa..._about_ that whole immortality thing..."

_ZzzzzZZzzRAK!  
__ZZZzzzzzZzrak!_

Twin bolts of black electricity coursed through each weapon into their surprised victims, speeding up their end as Crudus fell limp and Darovit began to disintegrate.

"_How?_" The enfuriated General asked as he fell to his knees and watched the red glow in the young man's eyes dissipate into black orbs, then to their normal form with grey irises as the aural connection from the Turning was severed, "_HOW!"_

"_Because_," Davin responded as he coldly stared into the dying Grimm's eyes, "even the thickest darkness can be expelled with a small but strong enough light. Lucky for _me_, I had a Little Sun Dragon watching over me the whole time..."

The fading General hissed with hatred.

"_XIAO LONG...LIVES!?..._"

And drawing out his twin saber from the dead faunus behind him, the young man drove the second energy blade into Darovit, Davin's eyes clouding over in black as he resumed the onslaught of dark electricity until the Grimm was finally vaporized.

Looking up at the battle, Davin was beginning to feel hope that there'd be enough time to help his friends...

Until the entire ruins began rumbling with the sudden appearance of another massive surge of Grimm, even larger than the two before it.

"You've _got_ to be kidding me..."

The young man was standing at the top of the ruins, watching the horde that numbered at least a thousand Grimm charge towards the battle. The one solution he had come up with was now the only one he had left. It was simple solution..._elegant_, really. He put down Starkillers and unsheathed the Trace from his back.

There was no turning back now.

"Well Davian, or whoever you are, I hope you left this thing working the same way it did a couple centuries ago..."

And hastily reaching into the glowing orchid line of the device, his hands disappeared as he pulled at its sides until it finally opened, unleashing a large plume of dark energy around him and revealing a gaping black hole underneath.

Now leaving the device behind him as the opened Trace floated in the air, he telekinetically recalled Starkillers to his grasp as increasing amounts of black aura began flaring around him, aiming to use the dust crystals within the weapons to augment the effects of what he was about to do.

_Hummmmmm_...

Holding out both dual-bladed halves of his weapon that hummed as it charged with aura, Davin watched the four energy-blades turn black and each half of Starkillers float on their own as the charge completed and then turned to glance at the distant battle once more.

_HummMMMMM_-

"I'm sorry, Yang..."

About a mile or two away, teams RWBY, JNPR and (V)NDS were guarding the rear of the retreating students along with Seul, Cipher and May, each student clashing fiercely against the Grimm as Ozpin and Glynda finally appeared through the massive hordes.

"Professor Ozpin!" Ruby cried out as the students barely recognized the two adults covered in gore who entered their perimeter.

"What are you all still _doing_ here?" The panting Huntress began, "we must evacuate the valley, hundreds more Grimm are coming!"

"No way!" Yang began resolutely, "We gotta hold them back until Vin-"

-_OOOOOM!_

The entire valley froze for a moment as a giant dark blast ignited, sending out a black spherical energy cloud from the ruins. The brawler blinked at the sight in dismay, feeling her heart skip several beats and sink knowing exactly who was at its epicenter.

"No..."

Even the Grimm turned for a moment to watch the phenomenon, and taking the opportunity, both Glynda and Seul jumped forward and struck the front lines of the creatures, Glynda sending several Grimm flying away into the rapidly-expanding cloud with a wide swipe of her riding crop and Seul slicing through several more with an air-blade strike.

Seul would've continued moving towards the ruins had he not been held back by a frantic Cipher.

"Has that bloke gone _mad!?_" The cryptic began in desperation, "If the blast gets out of his control, it'll tear Vale APART!"

With the advancing blast quickly approaching, the remaining students and professors had no choice but to flee into the handful of waiting airships at the edge of the clearing as the cloud engulfed the remaining Grimm behind them.

In the center of the blast, Davin watched as the energy began tearing out the life from everything it overtook, ripping grass and trees around the ruins to shreds. He could feel the raw power coursing out of his true Semblance and knew that in a few seconds more there'd be no stopping it.

"Alright...this is far enough..."

There was only one way to reverse an energy explosion of this size now, an _implosion_ created by the pull of a dimensional black hole into nothing. Luckily for _him_, he had one floating right behind him.

The catch was, the only way to set off the implosive chain reaction was if the blast source went in first. It was a simple, elegant solution.

So grabbing both halves of Starkillers out of the air in front of him, the young man wrapped himself in a cocoon of orchid aura and leaned back towards the open Trace behind him. As he closed his eyes, a final memory of the blonde bombshell serenely looking out of ADA's window as he lay on her lap overtook his mind before he uttered his final words and silently fell into the black hole.

"Into the void we go."

* * *

About an hour or two later, the Headmaster sat in his still largely-destroyed office at the top of the beacon-like clock tower spire, having been summoned by an emergency conference by the Valean Council.

Shrouded behind a dark screen for anonymity, the council was displayed on a small screen above the gear-filled desk, the lead councilman now calling the Professor out of his cloud of thought with evident irritation.

'_Ozpin, Ozpin!_'

The silver-haired man looked up wearily, "Yes, Councilman."

'_As we were previously inquiring, what were the casualties of the attempted invasion of Vale?_'

The Professor sighed heavily, pained to recount the loss of life, "Almost two dozen students, nearly half as many pilots..."

'_And there were reports of a strange blast that came from Emerald Forest?_'

"Yes," Ozpin continued, "It was a last resort which was promptly contained in an effort to mitigate further damages to our cherished kingdom."

'_But the fallout left several square miles of forest barren and devoid of any organic matter whatsoever!_' The councilman replied hotly.

"A necessary _sacrifice_, I assure you," the Headmaster replied sternly, the emphasized word holding more than one meaning, "Without it, neither I nor the grand majority of Beacon's students would be present, not to mention a large population of Vale, nor would we be here holding this debate of who to blame."

He hadn't told the Council the exact nature of the blast, much less its source. It would raise too many questions about the potential of aura, which had been kept hidden successfully for so many generations.

All in all, it was a direction to the conversation the Professor wished to avoid at all costs, especially considering the presence of General Ironwood at the conference. But none of it would buffer the verdict that was to come.

'_Ozpin, you've left us no choice. The Vytal Festival tournament cannot be broadcast, let alone held, if we are unable to ensure the safety of the citizens. Ahem... Therefore, we have reached out to the Atlas Council and together have decided that the best action is to appoint General Ironwood as head of security for the event._'

Of _course_. The General now came up to the fore on the screen.

'_Thank you, Councilman. Our Kingdom is happy to lend as many troops as it takes to ensure that the event runs smoothly and safely as possible_.'

'_And we thank_ you, _General_.'

The Headmaster sighed again before asking, "Will that be all?"

A brief pause before the Councilman's answer.

'_For now. But after this festival comes to a close, we are going to have a serious discussion about your position at Beacon Academy. General Ironwood's reports over the last few weeks have left us somewhat... concerned. I am sure you understand_.'

The council members disappeared from the small screen, leaving Ozpin and Ironwood in a private video chat. The General directed himself to the Headmaster before ending the call.

'_This is the right move, Ozpin. I promise, I will keep our people safe... you have to trust me.'_

He _didn't_ trust him. However, they were long-time colleagues, and though they often didn't see things eye to eye, the Professor had grown to get along with him over time. At least more than Glynda did.

But what set off the wise Headmaster's instincts was the fact that things were being left unsaid. By who and for what was unknown, but Ozpin had a gut feeling he would find out soon enough. He fell back into his cloud of thought as he looked out over the kingdom from the broken beacon tower.

And similarly so, in a distant tower in Atlas, Ironwood was pacing a large room decked in fine marble deep in thought. He had left Vale some weeks before, shortly after the school dance actually, and had never met the young man who had arrived two days after said dance. And so, the decorated leader was now trying to piece together how Vale was able to hold its own under seemingly unbeatable odds.

Not to mention the inexplicable blast that saved the kingdom.

Ironwood didn't trust that Beacon's Headmaster was being completely transparent either, and with that thought, he paused his pacing and sighed as he looked out over Atlas from his combat academy's highest tower. His gaze rested on the general direction towards Vale.

Beacon, to be exact.

"...You brought this on yourself."

* * *

Back in Emerald Forest, the large clearing was now flooded with people.

What was once a fierce battlefield was now teeming with scientists and police, visiting citizens being held back at the edge of the clearing to avoid overcrowding near what used to be Landfall Ruins. The only ones let through police lines were grieving family and friends.

The ruins themselves had been all but vaporized as well, the only remains being the stony outlines of what used to be walls and patios embedded in the floor and one small stony outcropping near the center of the flattened ruins structure. Around that stone, several Beacon students were now congregated.

"There. That should do it."

"Thanks, Ren," Ruby mentioned sullenly as she placed a grateful hand on the stoic's shoulder, who had an excellent ability for calligraphy.

They had just finished engraving Davin's epitaph in the stone.

Others were doing the same, family and friends of the deceased engraving similar statements of grief in the embedded stones around the stony complex.

But Jaune didn't feel grief...he felt guilt.

"If only I had held on a little longer," he began lamenting, "maybe he wouldn't have had to had done what he did...he could've _survived!_"

"Jaune," Pyrrha tried consoling him, unable to hold back the tears forming in her own eyes, "you did what you could..."

"But what if I could've done _more!_" He flared out with his voice as well as his aura, "You don't _understand_, he was my...*_sigh_* he was _like_ family to me..."

"He was like family to us _all_..." Blake spoke up, who in her grief had been unable to make eye contact with anyone since that afternoon, "he was our friend and always watched our backs, and we owe him our lives for that. And today he laid down his life for all of us in battle... and now we owe him so much more..."

'_She's right,_' Gabriel Arc now spoke up through their earpieces, '_both Vale AND Dorme owe him so much. I'm currently streaming every news feed in Remnant, and with all the previous battles leading up to this one now coming to light, many people are already calling it The Valean War. But I'm sorry to say, it looks like Davin's role has been and will continue to be kept hush-hush... looks like he'll be the greatest hero that Remnant has never known..._'

The members of teams RWBY, JNPR and VNDS along with the Dorme fighters involuntarily turned to the silent brawler standing in front of the stone, head hanging low and with one hand on the young man's name.

"We..." Weiss began meekly, "We should probably give her a moment. To be here by herself before we leave... the sun's already about to set."

The usually silent boy turned to look at the grieving blonde, then to his fellow fighters.

"Let's go."

The students turned to leave, the crimsonette letting her hand linger on her sister's shoulder before slowly letting it slip away. The brawler didn't bother to say anything while the students walked away and boarded ADA to wait for her.

A lone tear fell from her sunken head before she finally spoke up.

"There was something important I needed to tell you, Vin..."

She thought of those three little words over and over again, letting them run through her mind and regretting with every fiber she had that she didn't tell him before he left. Reluctantly taking her hand off his name, she stepped back to look at the engraving, tucking her hands into the sides of her skirt-belt when she suddenly felt something odd in her pouch.

"Wha-?"

And pulling out a golden medallion, she held it up to the light of the setting sun to see Davin's emblem on its front and smiled with a small sigh of happiness when she recognized it. She was about to put it away, however, when she noticed writing on its back side.

Holding it up to the light, the note was clear.

_I love you too, Lil' Sun Dragon  
__-DR_

And that was it. Letting her emotions break out in a physical heatwave around her, she clutched the medallion to her chest as if she hoped it'd become a part of her, and finally found it in her to put her thoughts into words.

She now straightened up a bit, still clenching the medallion to herself while she spoke to the stone as if it were the young man himself.

"Okay, Vin...people usually say something to someone they love at the grave, y'know? So, I guess I should give it a try... here goes... um... hm. You... you told me once that you weren't a hero..." She cleared her throat, struggling for words as she tried to continue.

"Um. There were times that I didn't even think you were _human_, heh. But let me tell you _this_, Vin... you were the best man and the most heroic... human being that I have ever known, and no one will ever convince me that you aren't." She nodded shortly at her words, making it a mental promise.

"And you know what? I... *_sigh_* I never in a million years thought I'd feel this way for anyone, but you made _miracles_ happen, you gave me everything I never thought I would've needed, and with it, you got me to fall in love with you. Um... I-I just wanna say, I was so lost, and I owe you so much. _So much_, Vin. So... _there_."

Satisfied with her eulogy, the brawler was about to turn around before one last request came to her mind. She pointed at the stone emphatically as she began.

"Please, there's just one more thing. _One_ more thing. One more miracle, Vin, for me. Don't be..."

Barely able to hold back tears, she had gone up to the stone and let her hand fall flat against the epitaph.

"_Dead_. Would you do that, just for me? Just stop it, _stop_ this..."

And letting only one more tear fall on the name, she stepped away from the gravestone, straightened up, and took a long broken sigh to calm herself. She couldn't help feeling as if something was trying to keep her there, that she should stay just a minute longer, but she wasn't going to.

The lone brawler turned and walked away as the final rays of the setting sun left the gravestone behind her, along with the words which reminded her that the best part of herself was now gone.

* * *

**Davin Rosfield**

**Friend | Leader | Hero**

**Deceased**


	44. Vol 1 Epilogue: 28 Hours Later

And so, Yang Xiao Long boarded the airship, leaving too early to see what happened next. She missed it, having made two mistakes.

..._Firstly_, she had ignored her instincts from a part of her that she couldn't explain was trying to keep her there.

...And _secondly_, she failed to notice that her last tear never hit the gravestone.

Now, seemingly hanging in midair, inches above the stone, the droplet finally began rolling down the side of some invisible device on one end of the outcropping until disappearing into nothing, a nothing which now glowed with a line of orchid light that started to flow upwards to the epitaph.

And breaking apart like a trickle of glowing fluid along a pane of glass, the line seeped into the letters, making each word glow with wispy tendrils of the substance before making a subtle change to the epitaph.

The first bit stayed the same, the familiar words glowing softly...

**Davin Rosfield**

**Friend | Leader | Hero**

But like a message from the great beyond meant for the brawler, from the space between spaces, a distant force rewrote the final word, adding a little punctuation mark at the end of it which disappeared as quickly as it came.

Yet... for a second, just a second, the change was unmistakably, undeniably there...

**Deceased _?_**

* * *

**A/N: Hehe, so the finale was actually left to end on this page :) Metroid, RvB and Sherlock references... definitely the way to end Volume 1! I really hope you enjoy it and feel free to tell others about it, the more feedback I get, the more I can improve! ^.^**

**And that being the case, I just want to thank YOU, dear reader, because just by reading this, you help keep me motivated! Sure, I have this story that I've become terribly addicted to writing, but when I get writer's block or when I just get lazy, it's been YOUR reviews that help me get back on it! And you don't even have to review, just looking at this page helps me go on (seriously, I have this cool little counter that tells me how many times my stuff gets read, it's awesome). And 30,000 views in just under 6 weeks!? Wow O.O Many thanks, peoples!**

**Oh, that's right. I said there would be an epilogue or something? Well, if you haven't skipped my heartfelt Author's Note already...**

**The Epilogue for Volume 1 starts now!**

* * *

_**28 Hours later...**_

_Bong! Bong!_

_Bong Bong Bong!_

"Argh! '_One Bullet Short_'! I can _not_ allow this to become my epithet!"

The metallic banging of cane versus metal rang out somewhere within the forests of Dorme as the man in the bowler hat continued trying to fight his way out of his robotic prison.

"One! Bullet! Just one _stupid_ bullet more and I wouldn't be in this _stupid_ mess with these _stupid_ partners!"

After the first hour of being trapped, the criminal had given up trying to reach anyone by communicator due to the lack of signal behind the heavily-lined tech of the Paladin, and after another twenty-three hours had given up his cool altogether.

"C'mon! Can anyone hear me! It's been _TWO DAYS!_ There _has_ to be someone else in this dust-forsaken forest, I'm a gentleman in _distress_ here!"

_CREEEAK!_

"Gah!"

With a metallic groan, a serrated sabre suddenly jammed its way into the shrunken cavity in which Roman Torchwick lay, the blood-crusted tip coming within an inch of his face.

"I... am somewhat pressed to say that blade doesn't belong to _Cinder_..."

And with a loud _screech_, the entire pod door came off in a warped metal heap, flooding the cockpit with rays of light from the full moon above the clearing that the disabled Paladins had created upon landing in the forest.

Torchwick now stood up from what would've been his metal grave and stretched out, looking up as he cracked his neck.

"Al-_right!_ It's about time you three broke yourselves out! So where's the nearest bathroom, kids? Cuz I _really_ gotta take a-"

He cut himself short when he looked down at his unexpected audience. Instead of seeing his old team, he only saw a single figure shrouded in a beaked hood and black tattered cape over his shoulder with a large saber, a puncture-hole in its center glistening in the moonlight.

"Ya kno', boyo," the figure began, his face hidden underneath the faded-white hood, "I was _really_ fixin' ta leave ye in yer cozy lil' tomb to _talk_ yerself ta death. Yet I says to meself, 'Cyn, be a good man an' break his sorry tuckus oot, the lad calls 'imself a _gentleman!_' And _gentlemen_ got good loads o' LIEN oan 'em!"

The hooded figure took a menacing step towards Roman, who noticed one of Emerald's Falx Pistols sticking out from underneath his intricate armored robes and one of Mercury's greaves on his leather boot's ankle in the light of night. He decided to let this hooded guy talk and find out who he was before making a move.

The bully, on the other hand, now noticed the criminal turn to look at the other three opened Paladins with some apprehension, so he continued with cruel relish.

"Oho, don't worry aboot yer frends...they were dead wen I _found_ 'em, hehe. A strappin' broad an' wench tho, I would've liked to have gotten mah hands on their ample..._assets_, when they were among the _livin!_"

Even for a criminal as degenerate as Roman Torchwick, the thief couldn't help a grimace of disgust at his antagonist, who only chuckled sadistically at the reaction as if it were a sick joke.

"Wot! Ye thot I meant the assets o' their buxom natures, boyo? Haha! Get yer mind oot o' the gutter! ...Tho ye _are_ right..." The figure admitted with sudden creepy seriousness before continuing in his original cruelly joyous tone, "Still, I mostly meant their _weapons! _Personally, I like to tek the spoils from the corpse of an opponent I killed meself, but oi, I'm no' wan to be picky! I even found _this_ rare treat oan the back o' that broad which I took the liber'y of takin' fer meself!..."

And brushing his cape aside, the criminal realized that this Cyn guy had not only scavenged the complete sets of pistols and greaves from the deceased Emerald and Mercury, but had also transferred the dust tattoo from Cinder's back onto his bare shoulder. Roman raised a brow.

"You...can _do_ that?" He asked before mumbling under his breath, "I'm tellin' ya, you kids just keep gettin' _weirder_..."

"That's right, lad. Neat trick I learnt a while back aboot dust infusion! But gettin' back oan topic..." The bully's eyes glowed a fiery red under his beaked hood as his serrated sabre lit up in flame thanks to the fire dust now embedded in his shoulder, "how much lien ye got oan ya... _gentleman?_"

He lifted the fiery sabre towards the thief's neck when it was suddenly parried back to the floor by the cane.

"Are you slow in the _head_ or something!?" Roman retorted hotly, "do you even know who I _am!?_"

"It won' matter in a moment..." The figure responded before yanking off his hood to reveal an angered countenance with a pale olive complexion and sinister sharp facial features under a head of short, dark brown hair.

His gaze then hardened at Torchwick with glowing blood red eyes and pupils bent into a cat-eye shape.

"Seriously." Torchwick deadpanned after he realized nothing happened, "Whaddaya gonna do, _stare_ at me to death!? C'mon kid, I'm Roman _friggin_ Torchwick, criminal mastermind of Vale! I'm _not_ gonna crack in some stupid staring contest you sicko, or psycho...whatever you are."

The bully grimaced as he realized he had found the second person in his life who was resistant to his Semblance. It really hadn't been a good week for him.

Roman, however, had now turned to walk away... and Cyn didn't like that. Charging him with sabre blazing, the bully didn't expect the criminal to turn at the last second and inflict a flurry of cane-strikes that left the kid on his back several yards away.

"Tell you what," Roman walked up to the downed bully, holding his cane up to the kid's face and popping up the crosshairs at its tip in a bluff, "Here's what I'll do, just because I'm in a good mood this evening after being set free from a slow and boring death. I _won't_ blow your head off, and you _will_ get out of my face so I can go back to Vale and plot revenge on a certain blonde and blue-eyed _pest_."

Cyn's brows suddenly shot up in recognition.

"Oi, maybe we got oaf oan the wrong foot 'ere, mannie," the bully began as he slowly stood up with both hands out placatingly, "but ye wouldn't happen to be talkin' aboot a kid with a sword an' shield, kinda tall and scraggly, and wit a nasty habit o' goin' aroond an' copyin' people's semblances, would ya?"

Torchwick narrowed his eyes, "_Yea_. What's it to ya?"

The bully devilishly grinned, "Well I known 'im me whole life, tortured the wee bastart 'till he cried to his maw...and ta tell ye the truth, I wanna see the goat _hang_..."

"_Hmm_," the criminal replied impressed, pulling his cane back and leaning on it to his side as he lit a cigar, "very persuasive answer... Well, I guess an enemy of an enemy-"

"Is just a dobber ye can wait ta kill later."

The criminal glanced pointedly at the bully when he interrupted, but only smirked in response.

"Ya know, kid, I _like_ where your heart's at! I guess I can see us going in on a joint business venture together after all! Heck, I'll even let ya keep the _toys_, and the strange... _body art_..." But the criminal's smirk now faded a bit as he looked Cyn up and down and pulled out his communicator.

"And look, for starters, I like your style. Seriously, you look like you could be a part of a Creed of Assassins or something. I give you points for fashion. But don't take it personal or anything, I simply prefer to plot revenge with a _professional_ as well, so if you don't mind, there's a call I've been meaning to make..."

And Cyn watched as the Valean thief now dialed and held the device up to begin a video call.

"Hello. This is Torchwick."

'_..._'

"I _know_ you're there, I heard you pick up. Take your finger off the camera."

The person on the other line complied, but the bully couldn't see who it was that Roman was talking to. Or at least... looking at? Because only silence followed.

'_..._'

"I _did_ hear it, that wasn't a bluff. And yes, I know I do that a lot. I mean _seriously_, just now I bluffed a kid with being shot by an unloaded weapon!"

Somehow understanding his silent video chat recipient, Roman now flashed a cheesy grin at the bully, who only sneered at his new partner. Cyn merely decided to continue trying to listen in on the seemingly one-sided conversation.

'_...!_'

"Hah! Yes, it was hilarious! But look, I'm gonna get straight to the point, sweetheart. I'll be needing your services again."

'_..._'

"That has _nothing_ to do with it... well _yes_, my old partners are... out of the picture."

'_...?_'

"No of course not! The pay will be _much_ better this time around!"

'_...!_'

No matter how much the bully strained his hearing, he was _sure_ that there couldn't possibly be anything coming through from the other end of the line. Yet, this seemingly perfectly decent criminal was standing right across from him, getting more and more irritated every second by a silent conversation.

"Of _course_ I didn't get paid in the end either! I don't know _why_, probably because I've been stuck in a robot for _two days!?_"

'_..._'

"You didn't think I would've asked for pay _before_ taking the job? These aren't your average criminal associates, ya know. They can _afford_ to be that stingy!"

'_..._'

"If it _would've_ been nothing but a drug deal, I'd have had them shot _in the face!_"

'_..._'

Roman now facepalmed.

"_Fine_... pay will be agreed at one fine-jewelry necklace with alternating rubies, vanilla diamonds and onyx stones... *_sigh_* Along with a vat of your favorite ice cream..."

'_...?_'

"_Yes_, I know which ice cream you like the most."

'_..._'

"It's _Neapolitan_... _There_, ya happy!?"

'_..._'

And finally, Roman hung up the call with a huff and turned to the bully with contained anger.

"_Mercs_... Can't live _with_ 'em, can't live _without_ 'em. That's the world we live in these days, uh... What was your name again?"

The bully deadpanned, more annoyed than insulted with the weirdness he had just witnessed. But if joining this criminal would help him get back at the blond Arc who ostracized him from his hometown, so be it.

"Tha name's _Cyn_. Cyn Auditore."

"Auditore, Hmm? Sounds notorious. Well anyway, any recent events at Beacon I should know about, Auditore?"

It didn't take much to find an answer.

"Course, lad. The goons an' burds jus wan themselves a _war_ no' too long ago, fought back loads of White Fang an' Grimm ta save ther o so precious kingdom! Wha?" he added with a diabolical grin, "Ya _missed_ it oar sumthin?"

Roman scowled, "Grr...well something tells me I won't be getting a _check_, then. Well then, since you seem to have been so involved with _civilization_, Auditore, then I might as well ask you this..."

The criminal internally grinned as his remark got the desired negative reaction from the bully.

"Have you seen any weird... I dunno... _happenings_, recently? Attacks, things that go _bump_ in the dark, anything that has people shaking in fear?"

"Aw contraire, mannie," the bully began with restraint, "thar been _no_ signs o' Grimm anymoar, people have been disappearin too, _tha's_ sumthin' the news hasn't told anywan aboot..."

The criminal raised a brow in curiosity... and a measure of rare concern.

"Aaand, any sign of... I dunno... strange _Grimm_ with dark powers? Things no one has seen before?"

The bully looked up in thought, his sharp features almost softened in the moonlight without his usual angry expression.

"Um. _No_. Anno ya been trapped in a wee bot fer a few days, but I been roamin these 'ere woods and 'ave ne'er seen-" and suddenly paling as he stopped talking, Cyn now pointed at something behind the surprised criminal, "Uh, w-would ye happen ta mean s-sumthin' like _those_ three holes openin' behind ye?"

The criminal turned slowly to see three dark portals opening up behind them, each with their own colored outline visible even in the dark. The edges of one was green, the other purple, and the other red.

"_Yea_," Roman began as they saw three dark figures making their way through, each with their own weapons like the one on the right who sported a red long-bladed katana.

"Something like _those_."

* * *

**A/N: And there's that! (And yes, Cyn is an Auditore. That was _definitely_ a reference hehe) _So_, this next volume will be done a little different, and will possibly take more time to do... I would tell you what I mean, but I'll let the Volume 2 teaser do it for me ;) But so far we've established _this_:**

** There are villains still in Vale: a little old, a little new...and a little sumthin sumthin to be determined! Like I said, I'll be taking my time in setting up this new volume which will have its own method of madness, so to keep up with the happenings, feel free to hit up TVW with a fave and follow :) Until next time, dear reader!**

**And as always, Happy Reading!**


	45. Vol 2 Prologue: 28 Days Later

**A/N: So here's the long version of the prologue I published as a one-shot :) It's a little long for a prologue so I'm sorry, but it helps set the tone for Volume 2! **

**Not a lot of action, but lots of character interaction... And a small twist with a certain professor ;)**

**The Vol 2 Prologue starts now!**

* * *

In a dark room, too dark too see much else, a small monitor switches on.

It doesn't seem to show very much on the screen, simply a small stool placed in front of a generic blue backdrop. Hushed voices can be heard off-screen.

"_Go!_ We're rolling, you're up, Ruby!"

"No! No go!" An anxious higher-pitched voice replies with a tinge of plea, "Weiss, it's too hard!"

"Ugh..."

And suddenly, a young girl decked in red is thrust into the camera's view, well mostly, at least. Everything below the chrome emblem of a wispy rose on her waist and above her nose is cut off by the frame.

A third voice off-screen, particularly nonchalant compared to the first two, now cuts in.

"Take a few steps back, there's a seat behind you..."

The crimsonette sheepishly takes a seat on the stool behind her with small, nervous steps. Her large silver eyes and worried expression can now be seen on camera.

"I-Is this good, Blake?"

"...there, much better. Go on, we don't have much time."

The red-cloaked girl is clearly uncomfortable as she begins, looking anywhere and everywhere but at the camera itself as an invisible tension now begins to fill the room.

"U-Um...okay." She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, "So, twenty-eight days ago, there was an event... S-Scientists of Vale are still trying to understand its nature, but have so far tracked its origin to a blast in the Emerald Forest between Vale and a smaller town close by called Dorme..."

She cringes before continuing awkwardly, it's evident that something is wrong.

"After the event, n-nearby villagers in the area were reported to be showing weird and mean, even Grimm-like, behavior. The reports have been getting worse, and now there are new reports of both people _and_ Grimm disappearing around the area...and...and-OHH! This is too much!" The girl suddenly cries out, unable to handle the pressure, "Yaaaaang! Where _are_ you!"

A door off-screen is suddenly heard opening and closing, a set of footsteps casually resounding in the room. A bright voice now calls out in response.

"Whoa, what's wrong, Rubes? I was just getting some snacks, sheesh..."

The young girl on screen stands up in distress, "I can't take it, you _know_ how bad I am with talking on camera! It's way worse than fighting Grimm, _way_ worse!"

"C'mon sis, it's just a minute on screen reciting a couple lines, y'know?"

But refusing to cooperate, Ruby now crosses her arms and pouts. Finally, a raven-haired girl walks in from the side of the screen and puts her arm around her peer before glancing back towards someone near the camera, her vibrant amber eyes glinting on screen.

"You should continue for her, Weiss...you're next, anyway."

"_Fine_."

As Ruby and Blake walk off screen on one side, a nicely dressed snowy-haired girl with a white laced jacket sits down on the stool, mumbling something about the 'dolts' she was surrounded by.

But now straightening up in her seat to took at the camera, the blue-eyed girl daintily places her arms on her lap and adopts a sweet smile as she begins.

"Hello, my name is Weiss Schnee, continuing for my admittedly adorable counterpart who forgot to introduce herself, Ruby Rose. Though the reports she mentioned are true and the title of this script _does_ seem to support the theory, it is _highly_ unlikely that we'll be seeing any zombies roaming around Vale... which would be a rather... _brain-draining,_ turn of events, no?"

And grinning at the camera with her impromptu pun, she waits for a moment as if expecting her team to bust out laughing. Her only response is from Blake.

"No, just no."

And with a mock hurt expression, the Schnee heiress seems to be about to say something before she gets cut off.

"We don't know _what_ they are," The crimsonette begins from off-screen, "but the reports do sound awfully familiar to something _else_ we've seen before..."

The mention of that something _else_ sends a visible shiver down the snowy-haired girl's spine.

And recalling the rather unpleasant battle that had occurred against that certain something, or some_one_, about a month ago in their Headmaster's gear-filled office on top of the Beacon Clocktower, Weiss merely clears her throat before she continues.

"Ahem... In any case, it was simply the title chosen for this end-of-year freelance video project. To avoid viewer confusion, _I_ would've chosen a title more fitting for the nature of this assignment: _Project Freelancer_..."

"Uh..." Bale and Yang can be heard off-screen in unison, wanting to respond to the touch of irony but being cut short by an icy glare from the heiress.

"Now, returning to the script," Weiss cooly begins once more, "There are new reports of people _and_ Grimm disappearing from the area, and future chapters will record further investigation in these developing events as a sequel to the written chronicles of The Valean War, also accessible through the same means with which _you_, the viewer, are watching this video."

And breaking her calm and collected on-screen character once more, the heiress suddenly exhales sharply in derision.

"...Though _honestly_, I find it hard to believe that someone would even go through the _hassle_ of documenting the events that led up to that final battle of the war, much less the blast itself. It almost tore Vale apart! Not to mention what happened to Xiao Long..."

"_Shh!_" Ruby and Blake shushed quickly off-screen at the mention of the brawler.

"_Weiss_..." the crimsonette continued with an angry sigh and a hushed tone, "Yang can _hear_ you..."

"Uh, I can _hear_ you saying that I can hear you, Ruby." The brawler cuts in, the usual joyful undertone in her voice now muted with the memory of the event. Nonetheless, the snowy-haired girl takes heed of their advice and continues.

"Hmpf. Very well. To continue explaining the nature of this project, I will invite my next teammate to the seat, who I'm sure can introduce _herself_."

And getting up to leave towards a side of the small screen, the quiet faunus-girl in black quietly walks over and shyly sits on the stool. With a small smile, she looks at the camera and begins.

"Hi, my name is Blake Bellerdo- bleh. _Belladonna_." She looks up to someone by the camera with an adorable chuckle, "Heh, we can edit that part out later, right?"

"Umm...sure?" Yangs voice replies off screen, after which Blake composes herself and looks back at the camera with a renewed smile.

"My name is Blake Belladonna, and I'm here to discuss why this script is being labeled a one-shot. First, because we've also been asked to cover the Vytal Tournament before all else, which has now been taken over by General Ironwood. Each match will be its own one-shot."

Blake quickly looks down at what seems like hastily scribbled notes on her wrist and looks back up.

"Secondly, because our clearance to document our investigations by video is still pending, and Headmaster Ozpin has been quite explicit that in this case we follow the rules as best we can. After all... we're some of the very few who know what _really_ happened at the battle of Landfall Ruins..."

And breaking eye-contact with the camera, her gaze is now becoming distant as she softly sighs, quelling some deep-down emotion that was trying to fight its way up. But she too now breaks from the script.

"There was a young man, a Hunter at heart who didn't even know who he was when he literally fell into our lives... we all learned, grew and fought together when darker forces arrived on Remnant. _I_ liked to think he was invincible. He wasn't." She looks down again as she furtively wipes her eye just inside the bottom view of the camera frame, "He laid down his life for us all at Landfall Ruins to save Vale from a very powerful Grimm General."

Finally calming down, she looks back up to the camera with a caring determination and a small smile of hope.

"So one day, when we've solved this mystery and have laid waste to these new threats rising around us, we will release the chronicles of The Valean War and show this video to all who will watch it... and that way everyone on Remnant will know about the true acts of heroism performed that day, _including_ those by my trusted partner, who will conclude this presentation... with a _Yang_."

"Ah! Your first pun!" The blonde now runs into the shot and hugs the catgirl with mirth, "Ohh, I'm so proud of you! Now go, go go, it's my turn!"

As Blake walks away with another small chuckle, the brawler now sits in the seat excitedly and begins getting herself ready with a smirk while checking herself on the reflection of the camera lens, adjusting her various articles of clothing over her incredible features and leaning a bit towards the camera as she puts on some lip gloss.

"Not bad, Blake! You're quite remarkable on video!" Weiss mentions off-screen to the raven-haired girl.

"Thanks. Maybe I have a counterpart in another universe with her own video blog or something..." the unseen Blake replies with a modest smile that shows through her voice.

And popping her lips a few times to make sure the coat is even, Yang now sits back and ruffles her hair to full volume before flashing the camera with her trademark grin and a one-liner.

"So stay tuned, folks! Till next time, and Happy Reading!"

I watch the girl wink at the camera from inside the small production room behind the set and cut the scene there. I still can't believe how she manages to hide her true feelings so well... especially after everything she lost.

I walk over into the set and loudly clap my hands once in approval.

"Aaand, that's a wrap, girls! Great job!"

The crimsonette speaks up first, still blushing over her cinematic mishap.

"Do you think we'll do good with our investigation project after summer vacation, Professor Dandelion?"

I look over the four Huntresses-in-training after hearing the question... each so powerful yet so fragile in their own distinct ways.

"You wanna know what I think?" I ask with a grin and the most encouraging tone I can muster, "_I_ think it looks like things are shaping up to be an... interesting second year."

"A good one, I hope," Blake adds with a small grin, "will there be anything else for today, Professor?"

I couldn't help wincing a bit when they called me that a second time. Truth is, I was just playing the part.

I'm not a Professor.

Sure, I _look_ like I could be one... I quickly think over Blake's question as I cross my arms, creasing the sleeves of my charcoal grey suit not very unlike Ozpin's over my black Oxford shirt, unbuttoned at the top.

"Now that I think of it, Miss Belladonna, yes there is..."

And sure, my friends usually _told_ me I could pass for a teacher, that I looked older than I am. But they would then say it was because I acted so mature and professional... HAH! _yea, right_... I just look old haha! But in reality I'm barely a couple years older than the girls in this room, one or two of them I'm sure will turn eighteen any day now.

But hey, doing gymnastics tends to age the male visage and body a bit.

Oops, Im drifting into an internal monologue again... Which explains why these four girls are staring at me waiting for me to continue, Yang now speaking up first.

"Which would beee?"

"...Uhh, right. Since today will be our last class, we'll need a final review. So, we'll be having individual interviews to compliment the video project!"

And in the instant that the girls turn to each other to trade nonchalant shrugs accepting the idea, I quickly go over how I got here in the first place.

* * *

I wish I could say I drilled my way into their world with a fabled Core Drill or dropped in using the top-secret trans-reality teleportation device in RoosterTeeth's basement after bribing Barbara with maple syrup, distracting Bernie with the latest Halo installment on the 3D tv in his office and knocking Monty out cold. I know it's there. Has to be. But that's not how I got here.

_I_ am a Self Insert.

A byproduct of a long and grueling battle in my subconscious one night after the events of the final battle of The Valean War. And finally, I got myself into the story! But the catch is, I only have one chapter to gear things in the direction they need to go, and in the twenty-eight days I've had, I think I've done pretty good. I now look over at Ruby.

"If you would like to follow me to my office, Miss Rose, you will go first."

As the girl in the rouge hood and I walk out of the production set and towards my office adjacent to the production room, I can't help but smirk at my good work.

In four weeks, I had infiltrated Beacon's staff thanks to a false resume (thanks for the idea, Jaune!), cemented my position as temporary Professor of Journalism, and had ensured that team RWBY chose my elective as their end-of-year assignment. Which involved crossing out all other available elective openings with four-letter team names I made up. Sure, I'd probably be fired for that, but tonight was gonna be my last night in this universe anyway.

But _why_ did I have to do all this for team RWBY?...

Ruby and I enter my small office and I flick on the light to reveal a generic desk and chair in the middle of the room with an empty metal bookcase to one side and a plastic seat near the door.

"Please, pull up the chair and take a seat."

The crimsonette complies before asking, "So how long's the interview gonna be?"

I let out a small smile as I sit as well and take out my trusty pen and notepad, "Not long... Just a question. One question..."

Why did I have to do all this? Because I _know_ what's coming, and only teams RWBY, JNPR and VNDS can save Remnant now.

But the difference with Ruby's team is that characters from all four of _these_ girls' pasts will soon come into play in ways they can't even imagine... And I _have_ to know that they're ready. Thankfully, with four weeks of planning, I had whittled it down to just _one_ question to know for sure.

"Miss Rose, what... What would you say to Davin Rosfield if he were alive today?"

The young girl pales, shuffling a bit in her seat before trying to respond and looking down, twiddling her fingers sheepishly as she does.

"Um... That's a weird question to ask... But uh, I guess I'd say I miss him, a lot. I mean, I guess as a Huntress I'll probably have to get used to that kind of thing, and I've lost people I've cared about before... But yeah, I'd tell him I miss him, and that we really wish he were here..."

I finish jotting down my notes before looking back up at her with a smile. I hope it's encouraging.

"I see. Those are very kind words, Miss Rose. That'll be all. If you could please ask Miss Schnee to come to my office now, it'll be much appreciated." The red leader begins to get up to leave with a small smile of her own, but I continue anyway, "But as a future Huntress, I advise you continue to cherish those you still _have_, even if they're friends and family you haven't seen in a while..."

She turns to give me a happy nod before leaving.

"...After all, you never know who will pop up in your life again."

* * *

After a minute or two, the heiress now enters the office and sits with arms crossed in the seat across from me in a huff. I figure she's not impressed with my workspace.

"Alright, Miss Schnee, just one question... What would you say to Davin Rosfield if he were alive today?"

I watch as her surprised reaction quickly turns icy cold in rejection.

"Are you _serious?_ How does that question relate to _anything_, I'm not going to answer that!"

I frown at the response... her lack of sympathy worries me with what she's got coming to her. She gets up, but instead of leaving, she ominously leans on my desk with one hand while pointing at me with another. She does _not_ look happy.

"You know, _I'm_ not quite sure what to think about you, Mister Dandelion... _if_ that is your real name."

I casually raise my brow at the hostile turn of events.

"Oh? Why so, young lady?"

"Hah! Don't play the dunce, it doesn't suit you!" She responds with a menacing tone, "I'm a _Schnee_, and as such have access to both public and private records through my family's company! And I've come to find certain _discrepancies_ in your record... for example, your first name is 'Savage'!? How do they let a man with that name even _enter_ this respectable Academy!"

"...Uhh, in my defense, _Savage_ was a childhood nickname I was given playing football... It kinda stuck, and I just rolled with it from there."

A confused expression as the icy girl rests both hands on my desk no less menacingly.

"Oh! Uhh... Playing _Grifball_, I mean."

"Hmpf. Very well, but try explaining your fake resume so easily!" Oh _crap, _this is going south fast! "You see, Dandelion, I knew Jaune's transcripts were fake from the beginning, for example... then again, who was _I_ to keep him from getting himself killed by his own choices, hmm? But after he survived initiation, I figured maybe he wouldn't turn out to be so bad. Turns out my intuition was rather well-founded!"

Now she resumes the pointing rant.

"_You_, on the other hand, are _not_ a student, and doubtfully even a _Hunter. _So give me _one_ good reason why my intuition wouldn't be as well-founded by reporting you this very _instant_ to the authorities!"

She now straightens up, crossing her arms with a self-satisfied smirk as I merely lean forward and set my arms on the desk in front of me. I lock my gaze with hers as I respond.

"The Royal Test."

And with those three little words, I watch her icy bravado shatter, her incredulous form plopping back into her seat as she continues to stare blankly at me.

"H-How do you know about that?"

I cross my arms and sit back as I think of the best response. Not that I didn't see the possibility of this situation arising long ago.

"Because I do. But don't worry, unlike the group of people you associated with before Beacon, I'm not one to use knowledge for my own nefarious purposes. I'm here to help, Weiss."

"Well...who _are_ you, then?" I was now looking at a little girl in white, her usual cold front down if at least for a moment to reveal... I dunno, something else.

"I'm a friend... a _fan_, you could even say. Look, I know this may sound cliche, but the question you need to be asking is who _you_ are. Miss Schnee, I know you belong to a very powerful and prominent family, and I know your father put you and your sister through several tests that children simply aren't built for. So believe me when I say I understand your dilemma, and why you avoid your family so much."

"..,Not all of them... did you ever meet my mother?" She now asks meekly, a touch of unexpected warmth at the last word.

"No, I did not," I responded. Her mother had passed away early in Weiss' life, leaving her and her twin sister Winter in their bereaved and therefore cold father's care. He hadn't coped well with the loss of his wife, becoming terribly overbearing with his daughters over the years.

"...But Weiss, I'm here now to warn you that you can't run from your name forever, you will need to face your family eventually... and maybe even sooner than you think. So I advise you learn to trust those along whose sides you fight. I know life may have made you cold, but don't let it turn you to stone. Cuz you're _not_."

"You sound so sure..." The snowy-haired girl remarks with a dejected undertone.

"That's because I am. The girl in the mirror you see, Weiss..." I now mention in terms only _she_ would know, "She doesn't have to be the loneliest of them all..."

She closes her eyes and takes a long pained sigh before nodding her head. After a brief moment, she finally speaks up as she stands from her seat.

"Davin was different. He never viewed me as cold... Maybe he was able to see more of who I am under my family emblem, like you do. *_sigh_* If he were still alive, I would thank him for that... and also apologize for not mourning him like I should've. I guess I have enough sorrow as-is."

As she turns to leave the door, I call out to her one more time before she reaches the threshold.

"Everyone is entitled to their own sorrow, for the heart has no metrics or form of measure..."

She didn't turn to look at me, but I caught a slight smile on the side of her face as she finished the quote.

"And all of it... Irreplaceable." she finally turns to smirk at me before continuing, her normal personality now returning, "I'll go fetch Belladonna."

Turns out she isn't too far gone. I guess I was right about her after all.

* * *

It only took another minute for the cat-faunus to come through my door. I remind myself that I'm not supposed to know her secret and decide to hold back from mentioning it if possible.

"Hello, Professor Dandelion."

"H-Hi!"

_Crap!_ This is _not_ the time to lose my cool. Even though Blake is _totally_ my favorite, I can't just fanboy over her right now like a stuttering idiot!

"Ahem... Er, hello, Miss Belladonna."

"Heh, you said that already..." She mentions with a light-hearted chuckle as she sits in the chair across from me.

I had only been working with team RWBY for a week, getting the script written up and directing the cues and all that other stuff I'd learned about after watching Michael Bay, Luc Besson and Doug Liman doing their cinematography thing. But I'd never been with her alone, so yea. And now, if she's anything like I think she is, then I don't doubt she's already caught on to my nerves.

Might as well tell the truth.

"Yeah, sorry about that. You remind me of someone I used to know... A very close friend of mine, who I'm very sad to say I eventually lost to time and space."

She seemed to slouch a bit, and interestingly enough, I noticed her bow droop a bit, too.

"I'm sorry to hear that. I... know the feeling..."

Full disclosure, it's _actually_ the truth. She is so much like her, Blake's entire character reminding me of a girl I used to know, you know, 'the one that got away'. She was my best friend. But you know how it is, sometimes it isn't meant to be. And I figure if I'm inserting myself into this, heck, I might as well be honest about it.

"Old relationship? Must've been a knuckle-head boyfriend to let you go." Sorry, couldn't help asking.

"Who said anything about a boyfriend?" She replies with a suggestive smirk and raised brow, but promptly resumes her nonchalant air as she continues, "He... was more of a mentor, actually."

"I see. A knuckle-head _mentor_, then."

She chuckles a bit at the admittedly lame joke, and then takes a moment to consider her response. I can tell she's trying to figure me out as the room falls into a brief silence.

"You're not much older than us, are you." Hmm, not a bad deduction.

"Nope. I figure two, three years tops. But you know, they're pulling temp Professors right out of combat academy these days."

"Hah, I see that," she points out with a grin, "...you're about _his_ age too, then. His name is Adam. He even wore a suit like yours... except in black."

Okay, wait a minute. It took her _months_ to reveal that info to her team, and she tells me this guy's name in _minutes? _

"Oh wow, name dropping our ex-es already? We must really be hitting it off!" I can't help pointing it out in jest. Yea, she'll probably just brush it off, but meh, I like poking fun at the obvious.

But to my surprise, she lets out a genuine laugh. That's... a first. I don't remember her doing that before.

"Yes... I believe we are."

Aah... _crapberries. _In a professional environment, at a desk, and talking about relationships. _Exactly_ how I hit it off with the girl I eventually darn near fell in love with. I can't let myself allow this, it'd seriously mess with this storyline...

"Well, then, that's nice," I begin curtly as I try to compose myself, causing her to raise an eyebrow in question, "Anyway, I was mentioning earlier about the interview, there's one question I'll need to ask."

She sighs, seemingly disappointed about the sudden change of direction in a conversation that seemed to be going well. Clearly, she usually doesn't hit it off so easily with others, and I can still remember how her first encounters went with her own team during her first day at Beacon. Eesh. Sorry Blake... maybe in another fic.

"Sure, shoot."

"What, uh... What would you say to Davin Rosfield if he were alive today?"

She sits back and glares at me for a second, her gorgeous amber eyes flashing as if silently rebuking me for asking such a thing. But after a moment or two, her gaze softens a bit as she begins to ponder it over. It's then that I realize that she's the kind of girl who spends five minutes thinking up a storm and then summarizing it in a five word answer, which she eventually does.

"I think he's still alive."

I'm pretty sure I visibly jump at the comment.

"Wait... What?"

"That's right," she responds, "I have faith in Vin. And being that faith can be said to be the assured expectation of things hoped for or unseen, then I can very well say that just because we can't see him doesn't mean he's dead. If he were here, I'd tell him I never lost faith in him."

"That's... very deep, Blake," I mention sincerely, "May that faith hold fast if ever put to the test. You never know when or where it'll come from."

"I plan to."

I smile as I watch her stand up and straighten out her black lace vest. She's a tough cookie, that one.

"I can tell you're not from around here," she suddenly comments, "Will we ever see you again?"

Huh. She was better at figuring me out than I thought.

"After today? No, likely not."

"Well then, I'll go get Yang," the catgirl mentions softly, but before making her way to the door she stops and sends herself off with the same expression she did to her mentor so long ago.

"Goodbye."

* * *

"_How do you know his name?_"

I sit at my seat, now looking at a somewhat ticked blonde who is leaning on my desk, not unlike her icy teammate ad done earlier, after having been asked the same question I've asked her team. Oh and yeah, she's on fire.

To put it in few words, I'd say this interview is a _stark_ contrast to the previous ones. Unlike the others, _this_ student looked like she was about to choke me... I now realize it would've been helpful to ask exactly _how_ Yang was taking her loss at Landfall Ruins.

"Look, all I know is that he was a part of a team that you knew well, and the question is simply an exercise to determine how well you can handle the hypothetically unexpected."

"That's _bull!_" Yang retorts hotly, a wall of heat lashing at my face, "Why do you want to know!"

I promtly stand up to face her, leaning down on my desk as well until she and I are nearly face to face despite the painful heat.

"Because if you were to react like _this_ to _anything_ or _anyone_ from your past who pops up in your life again, I can _guarantee_ you right_ now_ that things _won't_ go well for you."

The stern response seems to catch her off-guard... Her eyes quickly revert to lilac and she steps back, blinking once or twice as she processes what I just said.

"W-What are you talking about?"

"I'm _talking_ about my duty to you as a _teacher_," I add with the same level of intensity as before to regain control over the situation, "and as such, it is my responsibility to _prepare_ you for the unexpected as a Huntress!"

Hah, nailed it!

"Well you're still crossing a line," Yang replied with a tinge of warning still present in her voice, "and teacher or not, I'll _still_ send you through a wall for crossing it!"

"Oh _will_ you now?" Its a gamble, but I need to test her control. After all, she _is_ the strongest of the four.

In response, she engages Ember Celica around her uniform jacket sleeves. Okay, maybe she's actually serious.

Time to play my trump card.

I pull my trusty pen out of my inside coat pocket, a beauty made of pure onyx stone with a band of grey mother-of-pearl around it between two strips of adamantium. Yang's brow goes up as she studies my choice of weapon.

"Your go-to weapon as a Hunter is a _pen?_"

"Well, you know what they say," I reply with a confident smirk, "the pen is mightier than the sword..."

"Soo... Your weapon is a pen that mecha-shifts into a sword?"

Meh, who am I kidding.

"...No. It's... actually just a pen." No! Stick with the bluff! "_But_, it might _not_ be just a pen! So tell me, Xiao Long, do you _really_ wanna know what happens when I _push_ this here little button on the tip!?"

A moment of suspenseful silence.

Finally, we both snort trying to hold back our laughter at the unnecessarily intense moment, the brawler now scratching her head with an amused sigh.

"Handling the unexpected, huh? I get it, I get it..."

"Yea," I reply, glad that she understood the lesson, "Sorry if it pushed your buttons, though."

"Meh, it's okay. I've learnt to keep control and all in this kind of situation, and you're right, even though I'm ready to face whoever tries to mess with Remnant or my friends with gauntlets blazing, it'll be with 'appropriate restraint', as Glynda puts it. I guess Vin is still sort of a sore subject for me, that's all..."

She now looks over at me with some amusement as I pat down my overly-dried hair and sit to pull out some chapstick from my cabinet.

"I noticed. And it's alright, I don't blame you. I assume you both were close?" I've been asking lots of questions I already know the answer to today...

"Yeah, we were... But it isn't an excuse to go nuclear on anyone I talk to about it!"

"Fair enough! At least I know you've got it in ya to be a fierce contender at the Vutal tournament!" I mention warm-heartedly as I get up again and begin escorting her to the door and into the hallway.

She chuckles as we step into the open courtyard at the end of the hallway, dimly lit by the starry night and hologram lampposts.

"Heh, I heard people stopped calling it that after Ironwood took over and rumors came out on a twist to the tourney..."

"Oh? What are they calling it now?" I can't help asking. Didn't know about that one.

"Word on the street is that they're calling it _The Trials_."

"Sounds ominous," I shrug as we stop near the fountain, ready to part ways, "Oh, and before I forget... You never answered my question."

"What I'd say to Vin if he were alive?" She asks with a smirk.

"Bingo."

She pauses for a moment, just a moment, before answering resolutely.

"Easy. I'd tell him I love him."

I merely grin as we begin to part ways. The four of them are ready.

And as Yang and I reach opposite ends of the fountain, the flowing water obscuring our view to each other, I call out to her one final time.

"Take care then! I wish the best for you and your endeavors, Lil Sun Dragon!"

Immediately recognizing the nickname, the blonde dashes to the other side of the fountain only to see that I'm long gone, shooting through somewhere in space back to my universe.

No, I am not Davin Arc. I am a Self Insert.

And it was _awesome_.

Savage out.

* * *

**A/N: So there's the prologue, a fun personal project that I used to help set the mood for the next volume at the request of a good friend :) And now the volume name makes sense! I know it probably seems unnecessary, but I hope you like the unabridged prologue!**

**Stay tuned for Volume 2-1, The White Knight!**

**Happy Reading!**


	46. Vol 2-1: The White Knight

_**The Trials, Part I**_

_"Knighthood lies above glory; _

_it doesn't live off fame, but rather deeds."_

* * *

_Name, Jaune Arc..._

_Affiliation, Beacon..._

_Weapon, Crocea Mors..._

_Semblance, Mimic..._

The echo from Miss Goodwitch's voice on the loudspeakers dies down inside the amphitheater as Professor Ozpin looks down from the platform at the lone blonde knight standing in the arena below them and takes the mic from his partner beside him.

_Are you ready to commence your trial, Mister Arc?_

Unsheathing Crocea Mors and looking up at the silver-haired man, Jaune nods.

"Yes sir, Headmaster."

Next to Ozpin, James Ironwood now leans ever so slightly towards the Professor with a suppressed grin.

"Let's begin."

_Beep_.

Jaune slowly twirled his trusty sword as the three adults exited the arena to reappear in the spectator deck above and a few doorways around the arena began to open, feeling Crocea Mors' shifting weight and finding the best grip on its hilt as it spun around him a few times. Holding his sword at the ready and deploying his shield, the knight watched as figures began entering the arena all around him.

Sure, there had been rumors that this year's Vytal Tournament was going to be different after Ironwood was appointed head of security and pretty much took over the rest from there, but _this_, this was something Jaune didn't see coming.

He was now surrounded by a dozen AK-130's, three of each robot marching over to each end of the arena around the knight and standing at the ready as General Ironwood stood up.

"As you can see," the General stated loudly, projecting his voice around the spectator-filled amphitheater without the aid of a mic, "The rumors you may have heard about this year's tournament are indeed true. Instead of facing human opponents, entrants on the first day of competition will be facing squads of Atlesian Knights..."

A few surprised gasps from the audience at those words, the anticipation growing about the events that were to follow as the General continued.

"Those who pass will continue on to the more... _traditional_... single-round knockout tournament against other entrants until a victor is proclaimed. This arrangement is to foment true-to-life attacking responses, as is the case in a _real_ war..." He stated the last few words with a small smile and now looked down at the blonde leader as the facemasks of the AK-130's went down in activation around the student.

The Atlas leader was about to conclude when Jaune raised his hand.

"Uhh... General?"

"Yes?"

"Sooo... You're saying, these robots will be using live ammo?"

"Yes."

"Like, _real_ bullets?"

A brief pause, "...Yes."

"Ohh..."

The decorated leader couldn't help a complacent smirk at the seemingly diffident student, concluding with only a small piece of advice.

"...So don't hold back."

Taking his seat, the General watched along with the entire audience of people and Faunus from all around Remnant as the lead android motioned to the three bots standing in front of the knight to advance.

'Okay...' Jaune thought to himself as the three androids closed in and deployed fearsome-looking red-lined blades from their forearms, 'Strike and block like Pyrrha taught me and don't die... good plan! We'll go with that!'

"YAAAH!"

And charging the bots with sword at the ready, Jaune now sliced at the first one at one end while blocking blade strikes from the other two with his shield, successfully slashing through the bot's red glowing insides and dispatching the other two sequentially with a swirl of random sword-swinging.

He exclaimed with more surprise than victory as he stood over the pieces of bots panting lightly, "Hah! They aren't so tough, after all!"

The knight turned to his Spartan teammate sitting in the bleachers and flashed her a smile, allaying the initial worry she had about her leader facing military androids. But the smile she returned to him faded as she saw the other nine AK's approaching him from behind, so she stood up to warn him.

"_Jaune!_ Behind you! Remember your training!"

Quickly turning to face his other attackers, the knight sized up the situation.

"Oh. Right."

And now using his aura to focus, he advanced on the incoming group of bots, ducking under his shield for cover under the incoming hail of gunfire and coming out to slash through the first two androids on his right. As the robot halves slid apart in a ball of electricity, Jaune dodged a few punches and slices from a third bot with his sword before stabbing it through the chest plate and tumbling back to avoid the slew of blades coming at him.

'Sweet! Tumbled backwards without tripping! ...Uh-oh.'

Jaune didn't have much time to think before five more bots came on to him with blades flashing with killing intent. But quickly analyzing his tactical options and realizing that only one other android was raining gunfire into the fray, the knight quickly threw his shield at the bot a few yards away, impaling it with the pointed end and sending it flying back.

Now pumping aura into his limbs for added strength, he quickly obliterated four more bots in close combat, slicing clean through three attacking androids and punching the fourth one across the arena into pieces before performing a low sweeping kick to send the last Atlesian Knight into the air. It hadn't even been airborne for a split second before he grabbed it in midair with a glowing white hand and slammed it into the floor, the ground cracking underneath the terminated machine and the white knight who was now crouched over it after the follow-through.

Pyrrha watched the fight unfurling in awe before her stoic teammate leaned over to her with unbridled amusement.

"You know, Pyrrha, we _did_ just fight and win a _war_ about a month ago..."

"The _Valean_ War!~" the always-energetic Nora added with mirth. The name was really catching on among the inhabitants of Beacon and Vale.

It was a fact that Jaune too recalled before hearing several more clicks of loaded weapons around his head. He looked up in frustration to see a few more androids surrounding him, guns readied at point blank range as the leading bot spoke up with a mechanical tone.

'_Resistance is futile._'

"Oh, _c'mon_..."

Glynda craned herself over Ozpin to call Ironwood's attention at the dangerous standoff.

"Don't you think using this many androids is a bit... _much?_"

Neither the riveted Ozpin nor the mildly-impressed General turned to look at her as the decorated leader responded, "Not at all... watch."

And she did, right on time to see Jaune emerge standing with a yell from the middle of the group of androids after executing a high-speed 360 degree sword-spin. Instead of firing, the surrounding bots merely stood awkwardly for a moment before falling apart in halves all around him.

"Hah!" He yelled with relish before realizing that he was completely surrounded by another ring of androids, but this time sleeker and less scary-looking. But still definitely scary.

Atlesian Knights-200s.

"Oh, _C'MON!_"

As the audience now scooted ever closer to the edge of their seats, suspenseful anticipation began filling the air as the two dozen superior androids aimed their firearms at the white knight. His shield was out of reach, there was no room to escape between bots and his options were limited.

But he _had_ just fought in a war. And he and his friends _had_ discovered his semblance. Controlling his breathing, he looked up at the audience and went over the abilities he had acquired. Finding team RWBY, he now closed his eyes and focused on their leader and her amber-eyed teammate sitting next to her, all ambient sound slowly being tuned out around him until leaving only the steady beating of his heart.

"Here goes..."

And slowly exhaling, he opened his eyes to see a single white rose petal falling in front of him as a nearby AK fired its first shot.

His mind now racing a million miles an hour with the speed of his semblance, the world around him went super slo-mo with all the time he needed to turn at the incoming bullet and shove himself away with a pale white shadow-clone, repeating the motion as each bullet from the incoming androids were fired.

Blake couldn't help smirking at _that_.

The audience gasped as they now watched the white knight literally blurring in the hail of gunfire, moving so fast with all the shadow-clones pushing him away that every bullet missed and hit other androids on the other side of the circle, leaving less than a dozen AKs remaining in a matter of seconds. And at the moment the last few bots held fire to change tactics, so did Jaune, who know dashed at and dispatched the nearest android in a flurry of white rose petals.

Dash, slash, dash, slash. Two more androids went down near the side of the arena before the remaining bots opened fire on the exposed student... but to no avail. His eyes began to blaze white as he called up a third semblance, raising a glowing hand at the incoming barrage of bullets and magnetically stopping them in the air in front of him like a blond Chosen One.

Pyrrha leaped up in the stands upon seeing the awesomeness.

"Woot! He's using _my_\- oh." Right. People weren't supposed to know her semblance was polarity.

Not that Jaune was about to let up on the onslaught because of it. Flicking his wrist left and right, the remaining Atleasian Knights were magnetically sent into the walls with thundering crunches, sending the last one all the way into the stands which would've hit Ironwood had Miss Goodwitch not stopped it telekinetically with her riding crop. Adjusting her glasses as cover, she held back a giggle as the flustered General peevishly straightened out his jacket.

Ozpin, however, was watching the knight _very_ intently, not even noticing his peer almost get crushed under a heap of metal beside him before musing over the powerful Arc out loud.

"He just used _three separate Semblances_ in conjunction..."

"Yes, well I doubt that'll help him against his _final_ opponent..." Ironwood now replied gruffly.

_CREEEAK!_

Jaune's eyes reverted to blue as he looked towards a final door opening along the side of the arena.

_Clack clack clack clack! Clack clack clack clack!_

As the large four-legged Spider Droid with glowing red highlights stepped into the arena, it was now Blake who stood up in her seat.

"Oh, no! Jaune!"

Her three teammates looked at her with some confusion. The cat-girl seemed so worried upon seeing the mega-droid, it's not like Blake had ever seen that thing before... right?

"Oh, boy..." Jaune hastily let out before dashing to the side, evading rotating cannon fire from the humongous machine and its four giant guns before leaping at it in a rage.

"EEEYAH-!"

In retrospect, probably not the best idea. No sooner had he approached arm's reach of the android when he was painfully swatted away by a gigantic cannon-wielding arm into the far wall, eliciting a pained unanimous _OOOH_ from the crowd.

Team JNPR held their breath as for a moment nothing happened, finally letting it out as the knight made his way out of the hole in the wall haphazardly and shaking off the hit before realizing the Spider Droid was prepping its final strike - a mecha-shifted four gun salvo combined as a supercannon.

"Yipes!" Jaune squealed as he made a rose-petaled mad dash for his shield just as the giant beam was discharged.

_BOOOM!_

A blinding flash of light filled the amphitheater, after which the entire audience stood at their seats to see what was left of its poor target and the melted arena grounds all around him.

And under a glowing white shield, the unharmed knight emerged, white aura cascading all around him as he began walking, _walking_, towards the killer droid.

"He... does _not_ look too happy." Ren remarked before Jaune lifted his sword, swinging it around himself and unexpectedly causing huge gusts of wind to pack air into his immediate vicinity before-

"YAHHH! YAHHH! _HAHHH!_"

Two slashes of his sword sent two giant blades of compacted air at the machine, slicing the giant cannon to pieces before a third air-blade took out the droid's four legs, at which the entire audience now went wild with cheering. Though not as loud and as concerning as a certain hammer maiden among team JNPR.

"Yeahhh!~ _Break its legs!_"

Pyrrha and Ren glanced at Nora with a fair degree of worry before returning their attention to the white knight, who had sheathed his sword and shield and continued walking right up to the immobilized droid as it frantically tried to lock on to its powerful target. It never got the chance.

With blazing white eyes and a final yell, Jaune let out a two-handed blast of electricity right into the torso of the Droid, sending it into the wall with cackling forks of power before the machine finally fell to the ground motionless.

The amphitheater fell silent.

"Where on _Remnant_ did he get those abilities!?" Ironwood now shouted, having lost some of his composure at the unprecedented display of aura's capacity for destruction. Ozpin merely looked up cooly at the General.

"Two other fighters. Each entered into this tournament, actually. You shall see each of them soon enough."

James turned to the Headmaster to reply, "Five Semblances in one. _Five_. And you _knew_ of this?"

The Professor seemed almost amused as he answered.

"No... And I'm sure he's replicated several more."

But before the conversation could continue, Miss Goodwitch stood up and took the mic to make the final announcement.

"Victory goes to Mister Jaune Arc! Congratulations!"

The entire audience erupted in thunderous applause. The Vytal Tournament had been kicked off to a great start... And a half destroyed arena. Surveying the damage, Glynda continued.

"...and, in light of necessary repairs coming to the fore, we will have a one hour recess before the next match."

* * *

As the audience now began filing out of the exits around the amphitheater, several students trying to crane over the wall edges inside to get a better look at the destruction, teams RWBY and JNPR waited at the last functional doorway into the arena for the tired knight to return.

Pyrrha caringly placed a hand on his back as he rejoined the group.

"You've truly shown excellent progress with Aura control, Jaune! ...And I tooold youuu~," she now added with a subtle teasing undertone, "you have _a lot _of it!"

Jaune winced in pain as she suddenly pulled him into a tight hug.

"Owww... my _back_..."

And now his troubles were only increased as the rest of his friends now joined in with glee for an even tighter group hug.

"Oh, _c'monnn_..."

And as the combined grip of Jaune's friends finally loosened, they were now approached by team (V)NDS, Seul, Cipher and May, the latter of which practically jumped over the huddle to squeeze him senseless.

"Grk! May! M- back!"

"Yes, you're back! And okay!" his younger sister squealed in glee, "I'm so _proud_ of you, big bro!"

Matters only became worse when in her proud emotional state, she lost control of her semblance a little bit as she gripped her poor brother.

"Heegahguhgerk!"

_Thump._

"Um... Jaune?"

He now lay on the floor, twitching a bit as a lone wisp of smoke was seen rising from his charred armor.

"Oh, no! Sorry, brother!"

"Owww... It's okay, sis... It's just _pain_." And to his relief, he saw the healer over his worried sister's shoulder, "Oh, Velvet, good to see you... My _back_, please?"

Getting up but unable to straighten out, he was forced to crouch on the ground on one knee as the bunny-faunus came to his side.

"No no, don't get up," the timid girl cautioned as he tried to get up again but now hesitated a bit, turning to glance at the Spartan standing by his side, "b-but I forgot my gloves, I-I'm going to need to check every vertebrae for damage."

"Sure, of course..." Pyrrha conceded without realizing exactly what the nervous girl meant.

"Wait... what?" Jaune began in pain before Velvet got down next to him, gingerly lifted the back of his sweater and placed a warm glowing hand along his spine, "WHOA."

The effects of her soothing aura setting in, Jaune began relaxing as offset discs along his back softly popped back into place. A little _too_ relaxed in Pyrrha's eyes.

"Oh, wooow~" Okay. _Way_ too relaxed.

"Uh, Jaune... Are you alright." the deadpanning redhead asked flatly.

"Uh huh. Never felt better~" he answered, a woozy smile on his face as he slowly nodded.

"Oh, _really_."

"Aaand, im done!" Velvet quickly quipped under the questioning glare from the Spartan, a final pop resounding in the brief silence that followed.

"Oh, nice!" Jaune stated oblivious to his partner as he stood up straight, stretching and bending his back without resistance, "Much better, thanks Velv!"

He then looked at his Spartan with a wide grin and walked over to her, placing a hand on her bare shoulder and planting a small kiss on her cheek.

"It's thanks to _you_ I even know enough to survive in that kind of fight now..."

Unable to deny the spark of pleasure coursing through her body from the point of contact, Pyrrha let out a small sigh of pleasure as he stepped back, realizing that she really had no reason to ever worry about what he felt. But... what she _did_ have to worry about was who was standing right beside them with a video camera. Jaune soon noticed as well.

"Uh... Yang. What are you doing?"

"Oh, _nuthin~_..." The brawler began mischievously, "just recording a lover's quarrel and watching how they kiss and make up!~"

Blake sharply nudged her side.

"OW! Oh _okay_, we were asked to cover The Trials-"

"The Vytal Tournament..." Blake corrected nonchalantly with a passive glare at her partner.

"-That's what I _said_. Ugh, we're recording the fights before starting our end-of-year investigation project!"

"Mhm..." Pyrrha casually began before raising a glowing hand and deftly running it across the camera with a rare mischievous smirk of her own, "good luck getting any 'coverage' off of that."

"Hey no fair!" The brawler retorted with mock anger, "she just corrupted the footage!"

"...What do you mean 'investigation project'?" Sun now asked with curiosity, ignoring the disgruntled blonde who fumbled with another cassette to replace the one that had been magnetically damaged.

"Um, it's something we're kinda playing close to the chest, Sun," Ruby phrased it in the nicest way she could, "we don't wanna get friends involved..."

The monkey-faunus raised his arms at the group of students around him, "Pshhh! That's _dumb!_ We should _always_ get friends involved!"

And watching the group of students and fighters crossing their arms around her team expectantly, Ruby had no choice to relent.

"Um... Uhh..."

"It's about the reports of missing people, isn't it." Ren brought up pointedly.

Ruby nodded and Blake now spoke up.

"Our elective Professor... he uh, gave us the idea after we chose his class. How'd you know?"

"Well, it sounds like the News network wasn't paying much attention to the story until their anchorwoman herself disappeared, now the stories are all over the place..."

"Lisa Lavender?" Neptune cut in, "Aw man, I liked her..."

Words which earned an icy glare from Weiss and an innocent shrug from the blue-haired boy in response.

"Well, I guess we're _all_ in this now..." Jaune finally concluded, "We'll get more into it after the tournament-"

_cough_ "The Trials!" _cough cough. _Oh, Yang.

"..._fine_. After 'The Trials', and we'll see where this takes us from there."

"...A lil' _mystery_, maybe?" Cipher asked with anticipation.

"A little mayhem?" Seul added with a devious grin.

"And I hope to Monty at least some bloody decent _violence!_"

Yang sighed in relief as she finally got the camera working again, turning the lens to herself as she flipped her hair back with a grin towards the camera.

"Okay, recap time! _So_, Vomit Boy _throws up_ the competition in the arena, the S.S. Arkos nearly hits its first _iceberg_, and the crew comes back together to investigate Vale's newest mystery! The game is _so_ on!"

"_Darn it, Yang!_" Her team chided as a chorus of facepalms resounded in the arena entryway at the blonde's puns.

Ah yes, much more was yet to come... as soon as the caped Huntress finished repairing the arena.

* * *

**A/N: Hey there, Savage here! So you've just read the first part of a series of one-shots that I'm working on depicting how I think the Vytal tournament can go :) If ya don't like it, I'm sorry... Please tell me how I can make it better! I will be doing one-shots for each character so stay tuned, and if you have a favorite and have ideas on how they can be _awesome_, please shoot me a pm with your thoughts :D**

**Oh, and in case you're wondering how the %*# Jaune got those powers to begin with, I recommend reading the first volume of The Valean War, chapters... 23 and 24 to be exact ;) of course there's more development that leads to his discovery, but you know. Meh.**

**So, you the action? Sweet! Want some story with that? Awesomeness! Then I should tell you that this fic is a oneshot, there will be _NO_ further updates to _THIS_ fic... BUT I will be uploading the unabridged version of this chapter into the second volume of The Valean War available in my profile, just check the table of contents on the first page of my fic to see what I have planned and what I've already written for the Vytal Tourney, including a prologue to the tournament before this chapter ;) feel free to check it out and give TVW a follow to keep up with new chapters! Till next time!**

**And Happy Reading!**


	47. Vol 2-2: The Hammer Maiden

_**The Trials, Part II**_

_"Happiness, much like insanity,  
__often sneaks in through a door you didn't know you left open."_

* * *

Finally, after an hour passed fixing what was left of the arena after Jaune's little scrimmage in the first round of the Vytal Tournament, Glynda exhales sharply in relief, tidying her skirt as she now stands on one side of Beacon's Headmaster while the Atlesian General takes the mic on the other.

_Name, Nora Valkyrie..._

_Affiliation, Beacon..._

_Weapon, Magnihild..._

_Semblance... erm, Amazing, Sound Effects?_

The echo from James Ironwood's voice on the loudspeakers dies down inside the amphitheater as he looks down from the platform at the grinning orange-haired girl who's waving at him from the arena below. Miss Goodwitch now reaches across her amused silver-haired partner to snatch the mic from the confused General.

_Very well, are you ready to commence your trial, Miss Valkyrie?_

Transforming Magnihild into grenade launcher mode in her arms, the giddy maiden nods at the ready with an ecstatic salute.

"Youuu _betcha!~_"

Next to Ren, Jaune now leans ever so slightly towards the stoic with a raised brow.

"Seriously, that's her Semblance?"

"Yea, we think it might be more of a condition than a semblance, though. Doctors at home are still trying to figure it out..."

A blank stare from the knight, to which the usually reserved student warmly grins.

"...But I wouldn't have it any other way."

_Beep_.

As the three adults exit the platform and reappear at their respective seats on the spectator's deck above the arena, Nora quickly notices the dozen Atlestian Knight-130s entering the arena grounds.

"Wait... Wha?"

"That's right, Miss Valkyrie," Ironwood stands and announces, somewhat surprised that the girl had already forgotten her team leader's bout against similar bots merely an hour before - after all, it _had_ practically destroyed the arena, "this year's Vytal Tournament has a first round twist: your opponents shall be Atlas' finest androids! So I advise you, don't hold back..."

Three of the hammer maiden's favorite words. A diabolical grin spreading across her face at the glowing red androids armed with long wrist-mounted blades and automatic firearms for hands, she powers up the first explosive in her beloved Magnihild.

"Then in _that_ case... Grenades for _everybody!~_"

_Shoonk-BOOM!_

And with the detonation of the first grenade launched out of the shaft of her weapon, three bots go down amid the group of advancing machines, only spurring the remaining machines to close in with greater speed while three bots stay back to open fire. And with gleeful whoops and giggles, the hammer-wielder now performs a string of backflips across the arena evading blade strikes and gunfire until landing on the platform with a devious cackle.

"Here comes _another one!~_"

_Shoonk-BOOM!_

Two more bots blown to smithereens, she immediately resumes evasive maneuvers, her smile never leaving her face as she lands near a downed robot and chucks it at another one nearby, causing it to misfire and shoot down a few more bots near it. And tumbling in the not-so-graceful Nora way to the now larger pile of rubble, she ducks to avoid the hail of gunfire that comes down on her. The moment the AK-130s stop firing to check if she's still alive, she pops up with a cheerful smile as she makes her announcement.

"Here comes _another one!~_"

_Shoonk-BOOM!_

Three more bots blasted to kingdom come in the resulting explosion, Nora now kicks up the rubble in front of her and performs consecutive spinning roundhouse kicks in the air to send large chunks of metal hurdling towards the remaining bots while holding on to her trusty grenade launcher. The two androids try to focus on dodging the incoming pieces of robot, only to find the grinning Valkyrie standing right in front of them after evading death by scrap metal. Now, she slowly backs the two remaining bots that are waving their hands at her placatingly to the wall, chuckling maniacally as she does so.

"Here comes _another one!~_"

_Shoonk-_...

Her face now softens in disappointment as the two androids look down at the pink heart-grenade protruding out of the second AK-130's chest plate.

"Aww... It's bwoken~"

But looking down at her weapon, she realizes she had accidentally left it in 'Super Smash Bros Mode' - one of every eight grenades won't detonate on contact, like a dud, but only to explode seconds later.

"Oh."

She tumbles back a safe distance away right on time before the two confused androids explode in a cloud of pink dust.

..._BOOM!_

"Hmm... Okay," she now speaks to herself aloud in the middle of the arena filled with impressed, and somewhat concerned, spectators, "let's see, One, Two, Three, Five, Nine... That should be all twelve, right?"

_POW-chink!_

A lone bullet fires and ricochets off her weapon, scuffing the pink heart decal on her precious Magnihild. Now narrowing her eyes at the last bot, she begins to walk towards it while turning her blemished weapon to hammer mode.

"Grrr..."

The lone bot now opens fire on the orange-haired girl, emptying its two magazines to no avail as she deflects every bullet with her fast-twirling hammerhead. Finally walking right up to it, both opponents pause for a moment before she raises her hammer and winks at the bot.

"Boop!~"

_Wham! Wham! ...WHAM!_

And she nails the bot into the floor like the little Pixar lamp on the "I" in Pixar, covering herself with robotic goo in the process.

"Ewww~"

In the stands, Ironwood now turns to the Headmaster at the impressive display of combat.

"A very powerful student you have there. I'm looking forward to seeing how she deals with equally powerful opponents next."

And now, the doors around the arena open to permit entrance of six Paladins, fully combat ready and now targeting the surprised hammer maiden. Glynda glares at the General, who merely holds his hands up innocently.

"They've been retrofitted with AI units, no pilots... No harm, no foul."

He turns his attention back to the arena, sure that the orange-haired girl has met her match.

Of course, the Atlesian leader didn't realize that Nora had _already_ faced these machines... several of them, actually. In Jaune's hometown Dorme where events unfolded leading to the climax of The Valean War, a battle which was slowly becoming the most celebrated underrated story in Vale's vast archives since the scarcely-documented Great War.

So of course, he can't help feeling a bit confused when he sees a wild grin growing on the young girl's features. Or when he sees her glaring hungrily at the robots legs.

So. Many. _Legs!_

And firing her hammer behind herself, Nora now rides the recoil at the first Paladin before it can strike, lethally whipping her hammer around to loudly break both its legs before swinging it again over her head and pancaking its AI unit. Firing Magnihild again to dash away from the incoming gunfire and missile blasts, the hammer maiden goes to work on the remaining iron mongers.

"Smack!~"

_CRASH!_

"Pow!~"

_BOOM!_

"Bam!~"

_CRUNCH!_

Pyrrha deadpans and now looks over to the giddy hammer-wielder's partner as three more Paladins go down leg-less.

"You know the sound effects she's making sound _nothing_ like the sounds she's actually causing, right?"

Ren merely shrugs.

"Meh. You caught her on an off day. Usually, she makes animal noises."

The team returns their attention to the arena, where leg after leg of giant robot was being broken before one of the two remaining Paladins finally got a direct hit on the girl with its arsenal of military-grade explosives.

"Nora!" Her team exclaims in unison as the entire audience gets up in a unanimous gasp to look for her in the explosion.

But instead, they find her soaring in the air giggling above the arena much like she had done against a certain Deathstalker on initiation day.

"Aahahaha!~"

Finally reaching the apex of her leap, she comes down with a rapid forward spin, her entire body blurring as she holds the hammer above her head for added momentum and calling out to the Paladin she's aiming for like a crazy person from a classic thriller horror movie.

"Heeeeere's _Nora!_"

_POWWW!_

And bringing down Magnihild on the Paladin's head with lethal force, she actually carries her momentum all the way to the ground, the follow-through ripping the front half of the robot body off along with the strike and still carrying enough force to create a shockwave along the arena floor upon contact, knocking the final Paladin off balance.

But Nora doesn't even care to look back at the last robot as she slowly struts out of the arena. Before it even manages to lock onto her, she reaches into the shaft of her weapon and pulls out her last pink-hearted grenade, yanking off the needle with her teeth and chucking the grenade behind her which rolls to the robot's feet as she spits out the needle with a grin.

"Here comes another one.~"

_BOOM!_

The crowd erupts in thunderous applause as the final Paladin goes up in pink flame and the smug Miss Goodwitch takes the mic.

"Match victory goes to Nora Valkyrie! Congratulations!"

* * *

Minutes after, the hammer maiden's team meets her at the entry to the arena along with team RWBY, ecstatic about her incredible performance.

"_Nora_," Jaune begins happily, "That was awesome! You were a _beast_ out there!"

"You cleared out the arena in less than _half_ the time it took Jaune!" Ruby adds with awed glee.

But not really paying attention to the others, she leaps onto Ren the second she sees him with the adrenaline coursing through her body.

"Grk!" The surprised stoic ekes out as her grip tightens, "Still have energy for a sloth-hug, do we?"

"Ooh, not just for _that~_..."

And with a gleeful nod, Nora now did the completely unexpected... in the heat of the moment, she planted a kiss full on the lips of her partner in front of everybody, his eyes shooting open in shock but finally closing slowly as he let the pleasure sink in.

"_This_... is motion picture GOLD," the brawler quipped with a mischievous grin as she flipped out her camcorder and began filming again.

Across the arena, the caped Huntress appeared from behind her binoculars beside a very amused Headmaster. The silver-haired man didn't need acute vision to see what had just happened. He turns to his partner with a victorious smirk.

"So much for 'I can't possibly imagine those two getting along', hmm?" He now holds out his hand in a give-it-to-me gesture, "Pay up."

Slightly annoyed, Miss Goodwitch groans and rolls her eyes as she reluctantly hands over a 500 lien note. His smirk remains.

"Always a pleasure, Glynda."

Back at the group of students, Team VNDS, Seul, Cipher and May join them right on time to see the public display of affection, the guys sporting surprised expressions while the girls avert their curious gazes with a light blush.

But recalling earlier events as the flushed orange-haired girl finally pulls away from her partner, Sun is the first to speak up.

"Oh yea, almost forgot. She already told us they were dating and all that junk, the day we all realized there were so many pairings starting that Jaune thought someone was using Pheremone-"

"_Shut. Up._" The chorus of embarrassed rebukes had the desired effect on the surprised monkey-faunus. It was a long story...

But still, reappearing from behind her camcorder, Yang sighed longingly as she replayed the footage of the happy Noren pairing. Ruby was watching like a hawk, intent on snapping her grieving sister out of it. Monty _knows_ how bad it would be if Yang just shut down like her dad did after loosing Summer Rose.

"You still thinking about Vin?" The crimsonette whispers meekly, just loud enough to catch her sister's attention while the rest of the group laughs at Ren, who is frantically trying to wipe his tongue saying something about his partner's kiss having an aftertaste of diesel.

"Yeah," she responds with a nostalgic expression somewhere between a smile and a frown, "...he and I used to kiss like that..."

"_Okaaay!_" The rouge leader now shouts holding her hand to her ear while dragging her sister away with the other, "_You_ need something else to do right now! Time to go buy me cookies before the next match!"

"Whoa, what happened with Yang?" Jaune asks as the two sisters head to the cafeteria, always keen on helping his friends whenever he sees something wrong.

"I... think I know what..." Pyrrha comments as she takes her knight's hand.

She can only imagine the emotional anguish, the soul-crushing emptiness, that she'd feel herself if she ever lost Jaune... it's a heart-wrenching sentiment which easily causes her to sympathize deeply with the blonde brawler. She turns back to Jaune decisively.

"...we should go keep them company. I think she really needs it right now."

Instantly understanding, the knight nods and motions his peers to follow them, holding Pyrrha's hand closer as they walk towards the cafeteria remembering how caring his girlfriend has always been.

It was a brief meal with cookies galore that everyone enjoyed.

* * *

**A/N: Okay! The way I see it, I should be releasing the unabridged chapters directly into TVW _first_ before uploading the oneshots to the public. Many of you reading this here have kept up with the fic from chapter ONE haha, even when the story was deleted and later republished! So you guys _definitely_ deserve special treatment ;) Once again, thanks for reading/reviewing/following, and if you have any ideas for your favorite RWBY character's fighting technique, feel free to let me know!**

**In the mean time, this chapter was a good way to expand a bit on an otherwise sidelined pairing in the show :/ I hope you like it! More to come! Till then, take care**

**And Happy Reading!**


	48. Vol 2-3: The Spartan

_**The Trials, Pt III**_

_"You can't judge the brightness of a spotlight when you're the source...  
__only the loneliness of the shadow it casts around you."_

* * *

After Nora had laid waste to the competition in the second match of the tourney, it was now Pyrrha's turn to go up against James Ironwood's little 'twist' to the Vytal Tournament's first round: facing squads of the General's mechanized forces as a qualifier to enter the real thing. Jaune had also gone, with rather spectacular results, and now the Beacon Headmaster expects no less from the Spartan as he clears his throat before speaking into the mic.

_Name, Pyrrha Nikos..._

_Affiliation, Beacon..._

_Weapon, Miló and Akoúo..._

_Semblance... Po-KKSSssHkkk_

"Hmm..."

_Semblance... P-aakSSHHeeeee!_

The heavy feedback from Headmaster Ozpin's voice on the loudspeakers dies down inside the amphitheater as he looks down from the platform at the smug Spartan below who merely smirks at him from the arena. Hiding a smile, Glynda watches as the silver-haired man realizes that the redhead's semblance is more powerful than he once projected. He smirks before handing the mic over to the General with an understanding nod towards the redhead.

_A pleasure to have you with us today. Are you ready to commence your trial, Miss Nikos?_

Unhooking her trusty spear and shield from her waist, the cool-headed Spartan nods at the ready.

"Yes General, I am."

Next to Jaune and Ren, Weiss now leans ever so slightly towards the green-coated student with a confident smirk.

"Fifty lien says the androids can't even touch her _once_."

"Weiss, that's impossible." The stoic states flatly.

"Must you _always_ gamble at every opportunity?" Blake now remarks from the heiress' other side, an accusatory glare burning at the back of Weiss' head prompting the snowy haired girl to turn to face her inquirer cooly.

"If you _must_ know, it's not 'gambling' if you _know_ you're going to win." Weiss retorts matter-of-factly. But yes. She's a billionaire heiress... It was a vice she couldn't hide forever.

The catgirl raises an unconvinced brow, "Is that so?"

"Yes." The snowy-haired girl's intensity loses a bit of its edge as she tries to think of a good excuse, "I... consider it, more of a very short-term, high-yield investment!"

Fortunately for Weiss, she had also figured out how to reel in her mysterious teammate during the year.

"So, Blake. How about I give you five to one odds, hmm?"

Her raven-haired partner turns away in a huff. The heiress remains undeterred.

"_Ten_ to one odds?" No response. Time to go all out.

"_Fine_. Ten to one odds, _and_ fresh tuna rolls imported from my family's company-owned sushi restaurant for a _week!_"

Bingo.

Unable to fight back a reluctant smirk, the catgirl merely places a crumpled fifty lien note in the heiress' waiting hand.

"I'll take the _spicy_ tuna rolls, thank you very much."

Weiss is further pleased when another fifty lien note comes in at her other side from the stoic.

_Beep._

The signal to commence the match goes off and Pyrrha watches the three adults exit the platform and reappear in the seats above, loosening up as she turns to the entrance of the arena grounds.

'Alright,' she quickly recalls mentally as she readies her stance, 'Nora has faced a dozen Atlesian Knights and a half dozen Paladins, Jaune faced two dozen AKs and a Spider Droid. Each round completed in less than three hundred seconds.'

Her recollection is put to a pause when white-armored Atlesian Knight-200s suddenly dash into the arena. Three dozen of them.

As her stance lowers and her grip tightens on her weapons, the Spartan smirks as she finishes calculating her opponents' odds, starting a timer on the opened scroll in her hand before putting it away.

'Ninety seconds.'

Taking initiative to charge the incoming bots and down the first two with a quick slash from Miló, the audience cheers as they watch their tourney favorite begin her onslaught on the rest of the group.

Using Akoúo as a buffer, Pyrrha plows through the front ranks of blade-wielding androids while deflecting strikes with swift parries from Miló, using minute opportunities to twirl the lethal spear and dispatch the Atlesian Knights that aren't fast enough to react.

Now in the center of the fray, the Spartan begins to really shine as three or four bladed AKs engage at once, the redhead quickly spinning to deflect and dispatch blows with her spear around her sides or over her head while blocking strikes with the shield on her other side. Swinging Akoúo, she catches an incoming blade strike at the wrist of a bot with the notched side of her bronze shield and swings the entire android at the incoming mechanized adversaries around her in a fast 360 degree spin.

With more room to work with, she now crouches while using Akoúo as a defensive screen and stand to place Miló in rifle form over its notched end, quickly pivoting to fire at the dwindling androids approaching her.

"She makes your Atlesian Knights look like tinker toys, no?" Glynda asks with an amused smirk at her white-coated colleague.

"I'd expect no less from a four-time Mistral Regional Champion," Ironwood responds cooly, "but we'll see how she does facing even greater numbers..."

And just then, to everyone's surprise _another_ three dozen Atlesian Knights rush into the arena grounds. Which is ridiculous!

Pyrrha's eyes widen at the sight, and after blocking another android's particularly strong downwards stab with her interlocked spear and shield, she blasts it away and leaps back from the mass of machines, twirling through the air before landing on the distant platform in a crouch. Whipping her head up at the crowd of androids, her calculating nature goes to work.

'Sixteen androids to the left. Thirty-six coming in from the right. This is madness!'

"This is madness!" Jaune cries from his seat.

"This! Is! SPARTAAA!~"

"..."

The knight and stoic turn to their orange-haired teammate as she cheers with hammer raised over her head.

"Where on Remnant did _that_ come from." Ren asks his elated partner.

"I dunno~ Felt like the right thing to say, whatever that word means!" And with a giddy grin, Nora resumes cheering while the two young men trade careless shrugs.

But as the androids advance, Pyrrha finds a critical weakness: their unprotected central joints at their waists. A plan quickly hatching in her mind, she finalizes her assessment of her opponents with a grin.

'Forty-seven seconds.'

"ee-YAH!"

And with the perfect form of a discus thrower, the Spartan turns her entire frame and launches her shield in a curved trajectory towards the larger group at her right, her polarized semblance giving it formidable spin speed as it begins mowing through the midsections of the unprepared android victims along the far side of the arena.

With no time to lose, she fervently dashes at the nearly one and a half dozen bots to her left, twirling her spear around herself with impressive speed to dispatch the nearest bots to her while the others around her open fire. The Spartan now focuses her semblance before performing the incredible feat she's most widely known for.

'Breathe, Pyrrha. Breathe.'

The audience gasps in awe as each and every bullet "misses" their target even at point-blank range, the redhead leaping back and turning around every incoming ballistic projectile with form and grace. Of course it's her semblance diverting the bullets, but to everyone else, this is what truly makes her _The Invincible Girl_.

"Ohmygosh she's actually gonna do it, she's gonna _win_..." Ruby comments in amazement as Pyrrha lands from a forward flip and launches Miló like a javelin through the head of an incoming bot with her momentum, turning to quickly incapacitate two more androids on either side in hand-to-hand combat.

Using her knees and elbows to crack and break the two AKs attacking her, she crouches under the resumed gunfire and snatches each automatic rifle from the backs of the downed robots before coming up with both rifles blazing, outstretched arms making a wide arc around her to dispatch the rest of the sixteen androids that dared to think they ever stood a chance against her.

Running to the bot with Miló sticking out of it, Pyrrha drops her rifles to pick up her spear, right on time to catch Akoúo at her side and re-engage the remaining eight robots dashing at her that survived the spinning shield of death.

Weiss grins maniacally as she watches the strongest girl in their first-year class chop up the first bot with two large spinning strikes from Miló and turn with Akoúo outstretched to backhandedly slam another android into the floor with the edge of her shield.

However, said grin fades as Pyrrha comes up to a rifle pointed at her face.

_BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!_

Everyone in the audience flinches, but gasps turn to cheers as they realize the redhead parried the rifle with her spear at the last possible second, twisting herself around the firearm to dodge each successive discharge and adjusting it just enough to have it fire above and behind herself to destroy three of the few incoming bots behind her.

Pushing herself back from the android into a standing position, she quickly brings up her shield as a feint, distracting the bot into a high block which leaves it exposed to the armor-plated knee which comes up in a leap and blasts it out of commission. Following through with her jump, she flips back through the air and lands behind the second to last android before stabbing it through its chest with Miló.

'One left.'

And noticing the final bot's incoming blade, Pyrrha fires her spear and uses the recoil to launch herself back a few feet to engage her final dual-wielding opponent.

Blade rapidly clashes against spear as the Spartan deftly counters the Atlesian Knight's whirring blade, its freely-rotating wrist giving the quick-spinning weapon extra mortality while its other hand pelts her with bullets from its rifle. But catching her by surprise as she continues trying to deflect bullets with Akoúo, the AK stops firing and swipes its rifle to the side with sudden force against Miló along with its blade, knocking the spear out of her grasp. Both teams RWBY and JNPR mutter the same word as the robot begins to whirl its blade right at her head.

"Uh-oh."

Time slows down for Pyrrha as her reflexes kick in and she suddenly ducks back from the long blade that swings less than an inch over her head, the sharpened edge slicing off a lock of her bangs before she recovers and sends the android through the air with a crushing uppercut.

Leaping up after it, the Spartan places her shield at her feet and uses her semblance to rebound off the metal, thrusting herself at the flailing bot in midair and catching it by its jaw in a throat-grapple. Swinging it over her in rapid front flips, she slammed the bot so hard on the floor when she landed that its head came off in her hands.

Standing up slowly, the crowd begins to cheer as she casually throws the mechanized head to one side and picks up her weapons, glancing at her scroll after doing so.

'One hundred thirty seconds.'

She looks up and puts the scroll away as Miss Goodwitch now takes the mic.

"Match victory goes to Pyrrha Nikos! Congratulations!"

Despite the whoops and cheers from the admiring fans all around her, the Spartan sighs dejectedly before walking off the arena.

It was a match like any other, just another day for The Invincible Girl.

'I was three seconds slow.'

* * *

"Hah, not a single successful strike on the Mistral champion! My wager proves the victor!" Weiss proclaims proudly as teams RWBY, JNPR, VNDS and the Dorme fighters join the Spartan at the arena exit.

Pyrrha couldn't help smiling.

"My apologies, Weiss," the redhead now begins in amusement, "but I'm afraid that's not entirely accurate."

Lifting both hands to her lustrous red bangs, the Spartan straightens out her locks and holds their ends in place for all to see, eliciting a gasp from her friends as they notice a side of her locks have clearly been sliced off.

The catgirl now turns to her teammate with a taunting smirk.

"I believe I'll be taking back my fifty lien, along with four hundred fifty more and a week's supply of spicy tuna rolls..."

"Grr..." The icy heiress was now steaming at the ears.

"Same here," Ren begins with contained mirth, "but just normal tuna rolls. Nora doesn't like spicy food."

"Nope!~" the hammer-wielder adds with unbridled glee, "One time, me and Ren went on a date downtown, I mean, not a date-date, but- oh wait! It _was_ a date-date! Cuz we're together now! Like, together-together! So anyways, he gets some spicy moo shu at that A Simple Wok shop in downtown Vale and I get some noodles, and we start talking, and one thing leads to the _other_, and-"

"We kissed." The stoic adds flatly, finding the need to interject as he noticed the raising eyebrows and glares of scandalous accusation growing towards the Noren pair, "The spice transferred to Nora, and she didn't take it very well."

Interestingly enough, his partner now grins and proudly places her hands on her hips before concluding the tale.

"I only cried for twenty minutes!~"

And with that, the students around Weiss try their darnedest to hold back laughter while the heiress herself merely facepalms before giving each student a wad of lien and walking away towards the CCT.

"Ugh... I have a call to make..."

"Can't win 'em all, Ice Queen!" Yang calls out to her between giggles, "It ain't _Pyrrha's_ fault the General's best weapons managed to snip her bangs a bit! Besides, in the end they got nuthin' on her!"

She turns to the redhead to give her an assuring wink.

"Don't worry, you're still the Full Metal Huntress to _me_, Nikos!"

The Spartan replies with a smile that no one but Jaune can immediately tell is fake. He knows her well.

"Well guys," he begins to everyone as he warmly takes Pyrrha's hand, "we should probably get back to our seats... They'll be announcing the next entrant any minute now. Me and Pyrrha will catch up with you guys in a bit."

And ignoring the suggestive raised brows and giggles from his friends as they leave the pair alone, the knight now stands in front of the redhead and takes her other hand as well.

"What's wrong, Pyr?"

The Spartan sighs, her gaze on the floor as she responds dejectedly.

"It's what Yang said. Well, it's what they _all_ say to tell the truth..."

"What do you mean?"

She turns to glance at all seventy-two mechanical opponents she had reduced to piles of rubble in the arena, "Those androids, they're simply machines... _I'm_ the weapon."

Jaune nods understandingly as he now places a hand under her soft chin and slowly lifts up her gaze to his.

In her watery eyes, he sees for the first time a girl who had practically sacrificed her childhood to arduous training, a champion revered in the eyes of many but only truly known by a very precious few. It couldn't be easy being her, expectations surrounding her along with the imposing reputation.

"But you're _not_ a weapon," the white knight begins with a reassuring smile, "you're a _Huntress_. It's the common goal for everyone here. So at the end of the day, we're remembered for _helping_ the people we've sworn to protect, not just how 'good' we are at it. And _you_, Miss Pyrrha Nikos, you mean so much more to the people you save and the future Hunters you'll inspire... so don't forget that, 'kay?"

Grinning warmly at her knight, Pyrrha now nods her head and pulls him in for a close embrace, holding herself tightly against his chest.

"I love you, Jaune Arc."

"I know."

The knight and the Spartan now turn and begin walking towards their seats with an arm wrapped around each other before Pyrrha playfully nudges her partner on the side with a coy smirk.

"Heeey, since when did you become so suave and learn that Han Solo one-liner? Where did my lovably _dorky_ Jaune go?"

"Huh? Bah, since when am _I_ dorky?" Her semi-confident partner now replies with pride, "_I'm_ the smoothest- WAH!"

And tripping on his own shoelace, the knight quickly finds himself on the floor, turning on his back and looking up at the redhead who holds a hand to her mouth to hide her giggle.

Offering her other hand to help him up, Pyrrha watches him blush crimson and look down, scratching the back of his head and chuckling nervously until she takes him by the chin to give him a soft kiss.

"_There_ he is..." She cooes sweetly as she wraps her arm around his waist and they each head to the lift to take them to their seats.

"Um. Hey, Pyrrha?..." Jaune now begins nervously as they wait at the lift which promptly reaches the ground floor.

"Yeah?"

"I love you, too."

And as the pair get into the lift, each student looking at the metal doors as they ascend to their floor, Pyrrha smirks as she briefly glances up to her beloved knight.

"...I know."

* * *

**A/N: Whoo! Done! Heh, took the weekend for myself to sharpen the saw and got back to writing today :) This one took a little while as I tried to get the Arkos feel just right, but it's merely a feeble attempt at fluffiness... If there's any way I can do better, please feel free to let me know, reviews and pm's help me keep improving! ;D**

**In any case, thanks for reading! Abridged public version shall be posted later :) But stay tuned, next chapter will be out in a day or two: The Stoic!**

**Happy Reading!**


	49. Vol 2-4: The Stoic

_**The Trials, Pt IV**_

_"I Have Looked At You  
__In Millions Of Ways And I  
__Have Loved You In Each"_

_-Ren's Haiku_

* * *

Jaune was right. The fourth student was picked in little time after Nora went, and once he was notified, Ren quietly acquiesced and made his way to the arena grounds. His team had gone already, each against a different mix of mechanized opponents as part of General Ironwood's 'twist' to the Vytal Tournament's first round after taking over, each with spectacular results.

He looks up at Glynda Goodwitch as she announces his name on the platform close by.

_Name, Lie Ren..._

_Affiliation, Beacon..._

_Weapon, StormFlower..._

_Semblance, Absolute Defense..._

The echo from her voice on the loudspeakers dies down inside the amphitheater as she looks down from the platform at the serene student in the arena below and hands the mic over to her silver-haired partner and Headmaster.

_Are you ready to commence your trial, Mister Lie Ren?_

Producing his twin automatic pistol-blades from his sleeves, the stoic deftly disengages both weapons' safeties at once.

"Yes."

Next to the platinum blonde professor, James Ironwood now leans ever so slightly towards her with a concerned expression.

"Absolute Defense? A useful ability, but I can hardly imagine the practicality in _winning_ a war..."

"Well you know what they say," the Huntress replies with a small smirk, "The best offense is a good defense."

The General couldn't help grinning; he never really knew how to read that woman, if she were beckoning him to continue in their customary banter or merely shooting him down to end the discussion. It was an impasse in which Glynda thoroughly enjoyed placing him.

He would've continued had they not been interrupted by what sounds like a grenade going off somewhere near the audience seats.

_BOOM!_

"Renny-bear!~ Renny-bear!~ Reee-nyBEAR!~"

_BOOM!_

"Renny-bear!~ Renny-bear!~ Reee-nyBEAR!~"

_BOOM!_

In the stands nearby, the heiress has practically jumped into her leader's arms, pointing at the demented hammer-wielder firing her grenade launcher into the air.

"Is she _actually_ firing her weapon in an amphitheater full of people!? Ohmygosh she's _actually_ firing her weapon in an amphitheater full of people!"

"_Noraaa!_" The stoic chides sternly from the arena below, eliciting an adorable grin from his partner as she holds both hands (and Magnihild) innocently behind her back.

"Teehee!~ Love you, Ren!~"

Exhaling sharply, he turns back to face the platform with a small smile as he mumbles under his breath.

"Love you too, Nora-boop..."

And Monty _knows_ he does. Be it a long-time friendship turning romantic or a classic case of opposites attract, he's falling hard for that crazy hammer maiden.

It's only a matter of time before she finds the haiku he subtly left in her pocket.

_Beep_.

As the stoic now watches the three adults exit the platform and reappear in their seats above the arena, the heiress finally recovers her senses and realizes the somewhat precarious position she's in, turning to glare at the crimsonette holding her who's still blushing at the sudden proximity and who merely chuckles nervously in response.

"Hands off me, dunce!"

Dropping her precious cargo, Ruby rolls her eyes and sits back down in a huff.

"Whatever, Weiss..."

"Easy there, Tsundere..." Yang teases mischievously with a raised brow towards the blushing heiress.

"Wouldn't want people thinking all those fics out there about you two are _true_, would you?" Blake adds with a fiendish smirk.

Both victims now flush crimson and shout in response.

"_Shut. Up!_"

Yang now turns to her budding antic prodigy beaming with pride.

"Second best tag-team. Ever!..." The two girls high five before exclaiming in unison, "_Of all time!_"

"Shh! Renny-bear's about to fight!" Nora declares, calling the attention of her peers to the arena.

And fight he is... Dodging a volley of gunfire from the first wave of Atlesian Knight-200s in the arena, Ren expertly rebounds off a wall and returns a hail of gunfire in return while timing spinning flips around incoming bullets.

Reaching the horde of about two dozen androids, he begins to engage them with the bladed halves of his pistols and slashes through several of them as the adrenaline builds in his system. But before he can cut through the tenth bot, it lands a solid punch on him, sending him flying back and giving it and its remaining dozen or so allies time to engage their lethal wrist-mounted blades.

To make matters worse, another dozen AKs enter the arena with guns blazing.

Dodging more bullets and quelling his anger in the heat of battle, the stoic takes a long relaxing breath, recalling to mind the training he was given as a child by a lone Tibetan monk - a wise and nameless fighter who according to legend was bulletproof.

'It's not about anger... it's about peace.'

And with a low grunt, the green-coated student reengages his bladed opponents with a swift dash, countering blade after blade with precise slashes and spinning cuts to incapacitate the determined androids with a calm determined expression of his own.

One down, two down, three down...

However, between the larger bots closing in on him and the rifle-wielding androids surrounding them, the flurry of blows was beginning to overwhelm the stoic until the Bulletproof Monk's advice flowed through his mind again.

'It's not about power... it's about grace.'

Focusing his energy, he flips over an AK right on time to dodge a bladed lunge from another android which goes through its mechanical ally instead, twirling through the air to avoid the flying bullets from the dozen androids around them and landing on the side of the group.

Firing StormFlower at either side, he takes out several rifle-wielding androids before dashing at the group of bladed adversaries in the center. Nimbly sliding under the first slashes upon reaching the group, he holds both blades out to slash at several bots' knees before popping up in the center of the group and slashing backhandedly at the remaining bots' necks, leaving all but about six standing with blades still ready.

Quickly recalling the weakness which his red-haired partner had exposed in the previous round, he quickly slashes at the relatively unprotected central joints of each bot, dispatching five in rapid succession with twirling blade-strikes before being blocked by the sixth. Two more slashes are countered before he has to flip back from his opponent due to the increased gunfire and reduced cover around him. So much for weakness... those stupid Atlesian Knights are learning quick.

'It's not about knowing your enemy... it's about knowing yourself.'

Of course. Thank you, Bulletproof Monk.

Letting the final blade-wielding robot come to him, Ren sticks to what he does best and goes to work with the close-range combat training he's received, keeping the android between him and the rifles behind them while using his aura to push back every counter until creating a large enough opening to decapitate the stubborn bot with a slash of StormFlower.

Tumbling back to evade the resuming gunfire, he lands on the platform just as the AK's decide to reload, choosing to stay back rather than engage the stoic in close quarters. In the split second he gets to think, Ren remembers his final lesson with his beloved tutor before having arrived at Beacon.

'Aura is as real as you and me. You have to step on it as if it were a stone, swim through as if it were the sea. All you have to do is truly believe...'

"Less than a dozen androids left," the stoic tells himself as he sheathes his weapons and focuses on his aura, "Hang in there."

Leaping through the air as the hail of bullets begin once more from the remaining eight Atlesian Knights, the stoic concentrates his pulsing aura at his feet in midair and suddenly launches himself with incredible speed from it as if it were a wall towards the first robot.

"Ah!" Nora cries out in glee, "This! Is! _Happening!~_"

"Wait, what is happening?" Jaune replies in confusion.

The hammer maiden merely bounces in place grinning while she points at stoic who's about to collide with the robot.

With a resounding crash, the stoic expertly disarms the stunned bot with a flurry of straight jabs before grappling its wrists and holding it up like a shield against the rifle shots until it's destroyed. Chucking it at another android with enough force to tear each of them to pieces, he now jumps into the air and rebounds against another aura-wall a few feet from the floor at eye level of the androids before performing a feat that no one in the audience had ever seen on tournament grounds.

Launching himself dozens of feet horizontally through the air like water as if it were some sort of classic Kung Fu film, Ren turns belly up and unsheathes StormFlower before swinging his arms in a sideways arc and dispatching five androids with pistolfire, disarming the sixth and last AK he was flying at with his two last bullets before landing in front of it.

Before it can react, he quickly shoots out a straight open palm at its chest plate, only touching his fingers to the metal where a ripple of pink aura now emanates faintly. Realizing what the stoic is about to do, the android rapidly raises its hands in a show of surrender before desperately speaking through its preinstalled voice box.

"_The Lie Bruce One-Inch Punch!_"

"Oh," the stoic replies with placid amusement, "you know this move?"

The robot nods frantically.

"Lie Bruce was my father."

"_Y-You wouldn't. You wouldn't! It's considered the ultimate cheap move in all four kingdoms, your father never taught you that!"_

Its attempts at feeble dissuasion fall on deaf ears.

"You messed with my Zen thing, bro. Prepare to die... Skadoosh."

And with a short punch too fast for any human eye to see, the stoic sends the final android flying dozens of feet through the air to its explosive demise on the arena wall. But turning to the silent audience and seeing no one on the platform to announce his victory, Ren now narrows his eyes, getting the feeling this isn't over.

A feeling confirmed by the silent displacement of air rapidly coming from behind.

Turning with a pulse of aura focused on his hands, he blocks what turns out to be a massive metal fist of none other than an Atlesian Paladin.

"YAH! HAH! HEEYAH!"

Taken completely by surprise, the stoic focuses what little aura he has left blocking the giant blows in midair with his semblance. Left hook, right hook, left kick each are blocked by swift counters from the stoic before a final merciless jab from the iron monger sends him flying across the arena.

Coughing up a few drops of blood on his sleeve, he struggles to get up and readies himself to continue but only to see the Paladin disengage and stand in place.

_Beep_.

Turning behind him to the platform, he sees Miss Goodwitch take the mic.

"Mister Lie Ren, your aura has dropped to the red, signaling the end of the match. Match victory goes to Team Atlas!" And turning to give him her best attempt at a reassuring smile, adds a final remark, "Very commendable effort, young man."

The match ended, Ren doesn't even reach the arena exit before being met by his team and hugged by his mournful partner.

"It's okay, Ren-Ren," she coos softly as she delicately holds her dejected partner, "it was a cheap move on their part!"

And pulling back to see the empty Paladin in the arena, she readies her weapon in hammer form.

"I say we break its legs!"

"No..." Her three teammates respond in unison.

"It's arms?"

"No."

"It's neck?"

"_No_."

"C'mon Nora," Jaune states as he puts a hand on his teammate's shoulder who's pout is already beginning to tremble in saddened sympathy for her partner's loss, "let's get out of the arena grounds."

"Don't worry, it's just a match. No harm done," the stoic reasons with his long-time friend with a small smile before pulling her in for a side hug and beginning to make their way out.

"Mmm, _okay_..." She replies reluctantly, stashing Magnihild away and wrapping her arm around his waist, but only to hear a strange crinkling sound from her skirt. She reaches down and pulls out a small piece of paper.

"Heeey, what's _this?~_"

* * *

"Sup, losers!" Sun casually states as teams VNDS and RWBY meet up with team JNPR outside the arena.

A statement followed by a quick elbow to the side from the cat-faunus walking next to him.

"_Not_ the best timing, Sun." She hisses in a hushed tone at him, though he doesn't really seem to get it.

"What. Ren's not even close enough to _hear_..."

And with some surprise, Jaune and Pyrrha now turn to see the stoic has been held back several feet away just outside the arena exit by his partner who seems to be reading something and growing in excitement.

In their curiosity, the rest of the students now begin watching as well right on time to see the hammer maiden bounce in glee and leap on top of her injured partner to attack him with very public displays of affection.

"Aaand they're at it again..." Pyrrha comments with a light blush as she averts her gaze from the make out session.

"Oi, seems like snoggin's their favorite pastime now, isn'it?" Cipher light-heartedly asks as he, Seul and May approach the group.

"Ever since they got together, if I'm not mistaken," Jaune adds, the only one in the group who seems to understand his proper friend aside from their fellow Dorme fighters.

"_Yeah_," Yang begins with another mischievous gleam in her eyes at her teammate's expense, "you should see the way she _leapt_ into his arms! ...Sound familiar, Blakey?"

"Indeed it does..." The raven-haired girl replies enigmatically, crossing her arms with a smirk at the now-blushing crimsonette and heiress.

"Hey, what's eating _them_ two?" Neptune now remarks while casually pointing a thumb at Ruby and Weiss.

"_Nobody's_ eating _anybody_, Neptune!" The icy girl snaps, pointing a finger emphatically at the poor blue-haired student.

The students now turn to see the blonde brawler, who is now making probably the best troll face that Remnant has ever seen.

"..._DARN IT, YANG!_" Both Ruby and Weiss flare at the Queen of Antics.

"Wait..." Neptune now begins in realization, "holy crap! So the White Rose fics about those two are _real?_"

"Pfft! No _way_, Ruby's as straight as a door nail!" Yang replies cooly, "why _else_ would I tease her about it?"

Neptune breathes out a sigh of relief, earning an icy glare from his snowy-haired counterpart.

"Aw man, I was gonna _say_... that super-popular fic about them two _did_ seem pretty true-to-life and stuff..." The monkey-faunus also admits.

"Which one," Neptune replies, "Oh! You mean _The Shining Knight's Pain as Team RWBY Reacts to Massages of Vermilion?_"

"Yeah! That one!"

"That work of fiction was actually pretty good..." Ren now unexpectedly cuts in as he and Nora now join the group.

"You guys actually _read_ that stuff?" Seul asks the group incredulously. It was a terrible habit his friend Cipher wasted hours in, and the usually active boy wanted nothing to do with it.

"Duh!" Neptune answers with pride, "and there's a new one making its way up the ranks online, it's _called_... ~pause for effect~"

"..._The Games The Grimm White Knight and A Friend in Need of Divergence Play Before a Pyrrhic Victory!_"

Weiss now pinches the bridge of her nose to keep from going ballistic on everybody.

"What kind of a title is THAT!"

The silent bunny-faunus next to Neptune shrinks back in pain at the heiress' remark. It was her first fic... and so many inspirations had left her fumbling for a decent title name. That one seemed perfectly fine, right!?

'I'm sorry, Weiss-senpai!' The poor girl mentally apologizes. But before she can speak up to defend herself, Blake begins first.

"What's it about?" She asks nonchalantly, making a mental note to check it out later, however.

"Well, this one's a _doozie-!_"

"-Nerd."

"Shut _up_, dude!" The blue-haired student chides his staff-wielding teammate, "You see, the Knight is the main character, the lost member of a powerful family of warriors, and with the aid of a _Grimm_ version of _himself_ from the _future_, they both help fight a war to save Remnant and woo the heart of the Masterchief Freelancer Spartan lady who they also need to save from her own fate before she dies in the war against Lady Thor and her dark apprentice, Darth Snowflake!"

"..."

"And weirdly enough, the Spartan's a redhead with green eyes, there's an ancient sage who bears the mark of the Lotus and gives the Knight Gamer powers, and a wolf-faunus with what I'd call a souped-up version of Crescent Rose... Oh, and there's a black cat."

"I see..." Blake calmly replies as everyone now subtly makes reminders on their scrolls to find that fic when they get the chance.

"Meh. I'm not really feelin' it." Yang concludes casually as she crosses her arms.

"That's what I thought too!" Neptune continues without relenting, "Until they introduce the Sunfire General in the third chapter to aid the Grimm White Knight, an orphaned blonde bombshell who in her youth aquired an alien armor suit with an arm-cannon for a weapon from the mysterious Chozo! Her name is Barbara Aran..."

"...hm, okay! I dig that!" She flips out her scroll to save the reminder for later.

"Um, we should get back to our seats," May meekly calls out after saving the reminder in her scroll as well and checking the next name in the tourney list, "They'll be calling the next contestant soon, and his name's Viktor Ylvis... Hey, don't you know that guy, big brother?"

Jaune's eyes widen as he walks over to see his sister's scroll.

"Yeah! I never knew he had qualified! Huh, didn't know we could get the info for the remaining entrants either..."

"Only for today," the redhead clarifies as she finds the standings in her scroll as well, "and he's the only other Beacon student who qualified on today's lists... _hey_, did you see who's going later?"

The students turn with pleasantly surprised smiles at the boy, who now looks at his scroll with a certain degree of dark mirth.

"This... should be fun."

* * *

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed! Hehe, there are WAAAY too many references to count, so I'm not gonna bother listing them :P I know I'm a hopeless nerd and all, but if you know the references to Bulletproof Monk, oh gosh you are awesome!**

**Anyways, with the growing amount of reviews every chapter, I guess I'm gonna start just answering them here if you guys don't mind, Jimmy Fallon thank-you-note style! :D**

***ImSoAwesome: Thank you! And I figured since Pyrrha got hit in the food fight and by the Deathstalker, why not? No one's perfect, despite what Weiss may claim :)**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! All I'm gonna say is... There WILL be someone(s) making an 'unexpected' appearance near the end of the finals ;)**

***potatoslayer4: Thank you! Though... I'm not totally sure I got the idea, I'm guessing the period is a good thing! :)**

***profoundWHALE: Thank you! I appreciate the compliment and will do my utmost to maintain everyone in character as they continue developing :D**

***Skye Air: Thank you! And heck to the YES! The 300 reference was gonna find its way in eventually, heh.**

**So anyways, thanks for reading, and stay tuned for the next chapter, The Boy! It may or may not be released publicly being that it revolves around an OC... Any advice? Please let me know!**

**Happy Reading!**


	50. Vol 2-5: The Fox and The Boy

_**The Trials, Pt V**_

_"The deathless sting, that unquencheable Fire,  
__The undying worm, Despair strikes wild,  
__But often fatal too."_

* * *

Teams RWBY and JNPR watched as the final Beacon student of the day prepared to fight, an unassuming second-year fox faunus who strode into the arena while General Ironwood stood between the Headmaster and Miss Goodwitch at the platform to announce his name: Viktor Ylvis.

Wearing only the black slacks and the white long-sleeve button up of the Beacon Academy uniform, he didn't seem like much... that is, until he pulled out his energy blade from his back: a large mecha-shifting sabre with unfurling segmented sections of dust-infused metal and a glowing band of red energy at its sharpened edge.

_Weapon, Aegis..._

_Semblance, Necromonger..._

"That's the student from Emerald Forest," Ren whispered to his leader as the General exited the platform with Ozpin and Glynda to find their seats in the stands above the arena, "You recognize him?"

Of course Jaune recognized him, he and Velvet had saved the faunus-boy in the events preceding The Valean War with their aural healing abilities but had yet to see him in action, and watching the student put on his signature red wireless Beats headphones, his curiosity was about to be satisfied.

"Yep, I remember him..."

_Beep_.

The match that followed the commencement signal left the students quite impressed. Of course, Vik wasn't fighting another student, he was now fighting against a horde of Atlesian Knight-200s which were commissioned by James Ironwood in a first-round twist with his new authority.

A horde, however, which was quickly being reduced to shambles as the fox-faunus literally _danced_ his way around the gunfire, twirling Aegis so fast that it'd leave behind a thick trail of red energy that acted like a deflector shield sending several bullets back into the androids that fired them.

Blake, being the faunus-girl of the two teams with the best hearing, was barely able to make out the lyrics he was quietly repeating as he dashed up a pile of destroyed robots in a section of the arena near their seats.

"~Ti-ny paws... Up the hill...~ -_Whoa!_"

And deflecting more bullets coming from the center of the arena, he quickly turned to slash a lone AK trying to sneak up behind him right on time to continue with his sing-along.

"~Su-dden-ly you're stan-ding still!~"

Leaping away, he engaged the remaining group of bots which had opted for using their blades with merciless strikes from his own, calling out his moves as he performed them with ease.

"Slash!"

_Crash!_

"Spinning stab!"

_Crash!_

"Reversal!"

_CRASH!_

Sending the dozen or so remaining Atlesian Knights flying back with an energy arc emitted from a wide swipe of Aegis, he now held his hilt up and discharged a small fiery red orb from the bottom of the handle. Before the group of bots could reach him, he turned and swung his sword like a baseball bat to hit the orb at the androids.

"Swing!"

_splat...BOOM!_

The sticky grenade did its job marvelously, sticking to an incoming android for a second or two before violently exploding, leaving only one AK standing. Barely.

"Oho, a survivor!"

And with a sly grin, he pointed his sword at the lone android as it continued hobbling in his direction and tried to aim its rifle at him.

Jaune turned as he heard the heiress scoff nearby where his team sat.

"Hmpf, so what's he gonna do, _wait_ for it to go to him and impale itsel- oh."

Sending shockwaves of surprise through the arena - except for team JNPR - Vik's aura nearly detached entirely form his body in the blink of an eye, stretching across dozens of feet like a pale red apparition of the student before stopping in front of the bot with its glowing arm at the bot's chest plate, still connected to his body by stretched strands of the wispy energy.

And as quickly as it happened, Vik's body followed in the trail of his detached aura with Lord Marshal-like super speed that would've impressed Riddick himself had he been there to see it as Viktor Ylvis now ran the final android through the chest with his energy blade's momentum.

"Stab!"

The audience applauded heartily as the final bot fell and Miss Goodwitch appeared on the platform to announce his victory, to which he waved at the audience and made his way out with a grin. A grin that teams RWBY and JNPR knew would fade as soon as he saw no one waiting for him at the arena exit.

He had lost his entire team in The Valean War.

* * *

After the final Beacon student's performance, the teams now watch students from the different kingdoms come and go, two or three teams from each combat academy. Eight or so students have gone and failed, having been unable to face such overwhelming odds unlike the Beacon students who had grown somewhat accustomed to it over the year.

However, one Atlas student does manage to beat the qualifier with relative ease. A girl named Terra Ardavanus.

And though teams JNPR and RWBY make mental notes to be weary of her, they now turn with a fair measure of pride to the last group of entrants: fighters who have qualified for the tournament without any combat academy affiliation. The first of them turns out to be the boy, Jaune's childhood friend who is standing at the arena grounds as Headmaster Ozpin addresses him.

_Name, Seul Sinclair..._

_Affiliation, None..._

_Weapon, Hansel and Gretel..._

_Semblance, Kamaitachi - known as Razor Wind..._

The echo from his voice on the loudspeakers dies down inside the amphitheater as he studies the lone boy standing in the arena below. He had already offered Seul entry into Beacon once despite being the age of sixteen and had been rejected... It was a wonder the young fighter had agreed to come to the tournament at all.

The possible reasons certainly pique his interest, but having the wisdom of a man who had been around for a _long_ time, he knows the best way to find out is by letting time itself do the telling.

_Are you ready to commence your trial, Mister Sinclair?_

He only receives a nod in response.

_Very well._

Next to Jaune, Pyrrha leans over towards her leader with a slight frown while Ozpin, Glynda and James return to their seats above the arena.

"Jaune, you know him best... why would he do this? He annihilated an entire White Fang outpost single-handedly and clearly doesn't care for exhibition matches..."

The knight holds a pensive expression for a moment before responding, "I dunno, Pyr. The only times I've ever seen him persuaded by anyone was when they offered him something worth having."

"Which is?"

"Usually, the prospect of killing Grimm."

"..."

"I know," Jaune adds uncertainly, "the _only_ other time I ever saw him persuaded for any other reason was when my family offered him a room in our home as young kids... A place where he could feel a _part_ of a family that cared for him and could help him recover from his past. And from the family he lost."

"But who could've given him that kind of idea here in Beacon?" She asks quizzically, trying her best to keep her voice down.

The white knight merely shrugs, "Beats me. I'd say look for the person here who's the happiest to see him right now, _if_ there's anyone who even knows him well enough for that yet..."

Turning to furtively glance around their surroundings, the pair deadpans as they see the nearby crimsonette unexpectedly bouncing in her seat with excitement and making sure her team is paying attention with gleeful points and exclamations at the silent fighter in the arena.

"Wait..." Jaune begins slowly.

"Wha-?" His redhead partner continues incredulously.

"No..."

"But..."

"Huh?"

"Really?"

"..."

"_Nah!_" They both conclude in unison with easygoing smirks as the opening signal goes off.

_Beep_.

Seul now turns to the main door opening in the arena to see a mass of a dozen Paladins charging him. The spectators watch in curiosity as the silent boy, seemingly unfazed, simply bows courteously in wait for the iron mongers with his head tilted up and eyes them with a fiendish smirk. Along his back, held straight out behind him, is what looks like a long black sheath waiting for the robots' approach.

"Once again," General Ironwood light-heartedly explains to his fellow colleagues with a reassuring smile, "these units are retrofitted with AI units set just under military difficulty. No need to worry about the boy."

"We're... actually more worried about your _machines_, James." The Huntress points out matter-of-factly as the Headmaster nods lightly in agreement and continues watching the impending clash.

AI or not, the machines suddenly stop when without moving another muscle, the boy's sheath suddenly expands into a large black umbrella behind him at the far side of the arena.

Stirring up a vague memory in her mind, Weiss narrows her eyes at the sight.

'_That stance... it seems somewhat familiar..._'

Seemingly at an impasse, the Paladins now lock on to the boy, lighting him up in glowing red laser points as if testing his grit. His smirk now growing into a malicious grin, he brings the standoff to an abrupt end when the umbrella collapses shut with incredible force, sending so much compressed air at an unsuspecting Paladin nearby that it knocks the giant machine to the floor several feet away on its back.

And with little more than a silent chuckle, he now dashes around the Paladins in circle eights as their rotating machine gun fire follows closely behind, each close call deflected mid-dash by a twirl or two of his closed umbrella. However, the Paladins keep formation and soon manage to circle the boy which forces him to skid to a halt in the middle.

In another brief standoff, the giant robots now change tactics and arm their heat-seeking missile launchers at the elusive target in the middle, eliciting a few concerned expressions from his peers above.

"Um, Jaune. He knows he's in trouble, right?" Ren asks the knight, who's surprisingly calm despite the boy's seemingly slim odds of survival.

"Meh," the blonde leader replies with a shrug, "he's been through way worse... I wouldn't be surprised if they're right where he wants them to be right now."

He was right.

Opening his umbrella, Seul begins pulling it around himself with great speed, creating a small whirlwind as the machines now open fire. And with each missile now pulled around by the growing forces of wind around the boy, a dozen projectiles circle the silent kid several times before losing their lock and spiraling into the walls around the arena. Noting this, the machines then empty their entire salvos at their powerful target.

Big mistake.

Knowing that the discharge would leave a considerable heat signature, Seul now directs three dozen missiles around him and fires numerous blasts of air out the sides of his whirlwind, sending several missiles off course at a time that re-lock onto a machine and blow six of them to pieces before running out.

And without a moment to lose he unsheathes Hansel, an intricate straight-sword with the hook of his umbrella as its hilt, from the closed umbrella-like Gretel, his dark green aura filling his weapons as the Paladins reload their machine gun rounds.

But before a single one can fire, Seul swipes his weapons in a tight arc around himself, sending out a massive blade of air around him that slices clean through every Paladin left standing. And finally, every robot around the formidable fighter now falls apart in halves with spurts of electricity, his expression of enjoyment covered under brown hair that falls over his eyes while he notices a last Paladin begin moving again.

Walking over to it, he sinks his sword into its AI unit where the cockpit would be, twisting the hilt to screw the sword in deep before pulling it out and resheathing Hansel with an unintelligible snicker at the machine.

"Worthless."

But with warm enthusiasm at the incredible performance contrasting against the dour recipient, the audience gets up on their feet cheering as the boy turns to look at Ozpin who reappears in the arena sporting the smallest of smirks before taking the mic.

_Match victory goes to Seul Sinclair. Congratulations!_

The cheering continues while teams RWBY and JNPR appear by the arena exit and beckon the boy to them. However, they're somewhat surprised when instead of rejoining his colleagues, the Headmaster follows as well and turns to direct himself at the young fighter from Jaune's hometown once the group is all together.

"Mister Sinclair, I thought you should know that your match was registered as the shortest victory of the day... this must've been as easy for you as reciting the alphabet, young man."

The students now watch as Seul pauses for a moment and then merely shakes his head before raising a finger at the Professor.

"...More like reciting a letter," he responds quietly but cooly, "Just, _one_ letter."

"Indeed. Which is why I must admit my surprise at your acquiescence in regards to participating in this year's Vytal festivities... namely, this tournament."

The quiet boy seems to falter before answering.

"Uh-huh. I guess I decided to stay in Vale for a while..."

"So does this mean to imply you are willing to reconsider our invitation? As I said previously, our offer is still open..."

Scratching the back of his head, Seul turns to glance at the two team leaders as they silently goad him into answering - Jaune with pointed nods and Ruby beside the knight with an adorably wide grin.

'_Ack... Any reasons left to decline?_'

The silent boy began carefully weighing his options. He didn't want to be hindered in his efforts in ridding Remnant of Grimm. It's not like he _hated_ the monsters... but it was the best way he knew of forgetting the past, or at least of blowing off the anger and constant strife of remembering.

Not to mention how much he had begun to enjoy it.

But like a life-long vendetta, he had dedicated his dangerous skills to destroying every dark creature he could find, dedication which had distanced him from other people in general. Well, at least until the events of The Valean War.

"Do you accept?" The professor calmly asks again, smoothly interjecting into the boy's troubled deliberations.

"C'mon man... Do it..." Jaune encourages through hushed whispers.

"Say _yes_..." Ruby joins in, liking the prospect of having a new friend join Beacon.

'*sigh* _Any?_'

Sure, he had known Jaune for years, but meeting the crimsonette had been unexpected, her well-meaning words now giving him a new perspective on facing these beasts... did he _have_ to do it alone? More importantly, could he possibly re-enter a life in Vale that he had left many years ago?

And now Ruby's making that puppy-dog look. Aw, crapberries.

'_Nope. All out of reasons._'

"Uh..." The boy now begins softly, "Yea."

"Excellent," the Professor replies with a small smile as he picks up his cane ready to turn and leave, "We'll see you next round."

And as soon as Ozpin leaves, the group of congratulating students converge on Seul, Jaune being the first one to reach him with a spine-crushing hug.

"Oh, I can't believe my ol' pal is going to Beacon with me! This is the best day ever!"

The poor boy barely gets a chance to gasp, "Please stop..."

Finally letting him go, Jaune is no less overjoyed as before.

"But I'm so proud of you!"

"Really Jaune," Seul replies modestly, "it was nothing..."

"What do you mean? It was incredible! Everyone in Beacon is going to think you're the cat's pajamas!"

Yang deadpans and turns to look at her sister with a slight frown.

"Oh my dust, is _that_ what it was like when you and me got to Beacon?"

Ruby light-heartedly glares at her with a smirk before responding, "Pretty much."

And easing her arm around the crimsonette to give her an apologetic side hug, the brawler merely nods her head slowly in understanding while the rest of team JNPR join in the goodwill.

"My bad."

"Hmm, but I wonder why Ozpin was so insistent after being rejected the first time," Blake now mentions after having congratulated the boy and returned to her teammates' side along with the heiress.

The catgirl too has her suspicions about the boy, like a nagging memory from her past that she can't put a finger on quite yet. But for a different and far darker reason than her snowy-haired teammate.

Weiss purses her lips pensively for a moment before responding, "I'm not sure... granted, the boy has some skill, but I find it odd that he would've asked a second time."

"Well we don't have any more time to talk about it!" Ruby suddenly cries out as she looks down at her scroll and realizes the time, "We gotta get back to our seats before Jaune's little sister goes out, and she's up next!"

And without further ado, the students quickly dash to their respective stands as General Ironwood stands up to make the announcement.

In his seat, Ozpin stifles a grin at the situation.

He had read Seul well from the first time around... A youth with a troubled past and lacking guidance, an individual of potential in need of true direction lest he become mere wasted energy. This boy was much too skilled to have specialized only in eliminating Grimm, but those were questions that could be answered later. Besides, it wasn't the main reason he wished to mentor this child.

He saw traces of his own past in the boy.

An alternate turn of events a younger Ozpin might've taken had it not have been for his tutors, two famous Arc brothers from long ago, who took him in along with his platinum-blonde partner of old who he now turns to see has her nose in her tablet as always, analyzing the next entrant.

"May Arc..." She begins aloud, sensing her long-time partner's attention on her while she studies the little short-haired blonde girl on the screen, "If she's anything like her brother, this will be a very intriguing match."

And standing up with a courteous nod to the Headmaster, she shortly smiles at him with rare warmth before resuming her usual professional air by clearing her throat and adjusting her glasses while making her way down to join the General.

"James is correct," the silver-haired man admits to himself with a smirk before following her down to the platform, "she hasn't changed a bit."

* * *

**A/N: Okay! OC chapter done! Heh, I'll have to admit that Viktor started out as a plucky comic relief walk-on but has now turned into an RvB Tucker-like dude with an energy sword haha :) and yeah, that means he's gonna become important I guess?**

**But after seeing team CVFY in action... Well, I feel bad for what happened to them in Volume One... :'( sorry, CVFY lovers! We still got Velvet! :D Now for some thank you notes!**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! And though I think White Rose is pretty cool, I gotta admit I've always seen Ruby and Weiss as the Sherlock and Watson of this series - a cold and calculating prodigy meets a warm and affable partner and work together to solve crimes and stuff! And of course, with all the time they spend together they get PLENTY of raised eyebrows for their orientation which leads to comedy and teasing since neither are spoken for! At least not Watson, until Season 3. And that's funny... Ruby will be in my Volume 3 soon! A coincidence?... DUNDUNDUN!**

***ImSoAwesome: Thank you! And dude, you're the HUNDRETH review! That's so cool! XD**

***Skye Air: Thank you! I'm glad someone got it! It was a Bruce Lee reference embedded in a Kung Fu Panda reference hehehe... :D**

***Lazercorn51104: Thank you! Gotta have em! Actually, _hey_, just wait and see if I've got any more references. I'll bring some references... love me some references... (Did you catch the reference? Hehe...)**

***Warmach1ne32: Thank you! And you know what else!? CHALLENGE ACCEPTED! ):D**

**Thats right folks, I'll do Velvet's fake fic as a oneshot and see where it goes from there... A parody of EVERY FRIGGIN FANFIC I've read! Muahahaaaa! Anyways, I'm gonna go take my crazy pills now... Next update should be out in a day or two, The New Arc!**

**Happy Reading!**


	51. Vol 2-6: The New Arc

_**The Trials, Pt VI**_

_"I smile_

_Because you're my big bro_

_I laugh_

_Because there's nothing you can do about it."_

* * *

_Name, May Arc..._

_Affiliation, None..._

_Weapon, Dual Fates..._

_Semblance, Electrokinesis..._

The echo from General Ironwood's voice from the loudspeakers dies down inside the amphitheater as Miss Goodwitch looks down from the platform at the lone blonde girl standing in the arena below them and takes the mic from her colleague standing next to her.

_Are you ready to commence your trial, Miss Arc?_

And like her brother, she shows little fear as she cutely curtsies and looks up at the Huntress.

"Yes, ma'am."

Next to Glynda, Ironwood now leans ever so slightly towards the Professor with a suppressed grin.

"The girl has quite the reputation after The Valean War. She'd make quite the addition in Atlas' combat academy, don't you think?"

The silver-haired man merely looks on at the young girl without seeming to pay attention to his fellow Headmaster. But he hadn't missed a word, his hands gripping his cane-top just a tad harder than before at the General's expressed wishes.

"Hmm..."

_Beep_.

As the three adults exit the arena to reappear in the spectator seats above, the audience looks on with increasing curiosity as the young blonde merely sighs deeply and looks down with eyes closed.

"Seriously Jaune," Nora begins with a not-so-subtle 'whisper', "you know she looks like a blonde Mayu Sakuma, right!?~"

"The Cinderella Girl? Yeah, she gets that a lot. May used to model too, you know..."

The hammer-maiden's eyes widen in awe, "*_gasp_* _Wow_, really?~ So cool! ...wait. What did she model?"

"Nora..." Ren now cuts in, "you know what a model _is_, right?"

"Of _course_, don't be a silly bear, Ren!~" she replies with mock offense and continues matter-of-factly, "There's _oodles_ of them, models for like, just about _everything!_~ Model planes, model homes, model ships, model furniture, model towns, model citizens, model toys..."

And while his bubbly teammate continues her long list of models, Ren listens on in amusement while Jaune turns to watch his sister with a light chuckle.

Taking after her father's distinctive 'Arc features' - blonde hair and blue eyes - and mother's fine complexion, the serene beauty in a ruffled blue a-line skirt with a corset top over a blouse with rolled-up sleeves waits for her attackers which promptly come through the doors behind and around her. Two dozen Atlesian Knight-200s.

She doesn't even flinch despite the loud noises around her, which causes the androids that are now surrounding her to hesitate for just a second.

And in that second, the young girl drops her two long ribbons wrapped around each arm in two little piles on the floor without looking up, an end of each tied to her little finger in either hand. The AK's ready their weapons, but before a single one can fire, several of them are sliced through and shattered by a ribbon she suddenly whips with a flick of her wrist.

Now opening her eyes, the young blonde looks up with a small grin as she turns to the androids on her other side and lashes out her other ribbon with blinding speed. And with the power and force of snapping iron cables tearing through concrete, May's Dual Fates wreak havoc on the remaining bots as they open fire, the young Arc expertly evading and dodging incoming bullets with flips and twirls that only add momentum to continued ribbon-strikes.

"How do those things manage to do so much damage?" Blake now leans in from behind to ask the White Knight, no stranger to the use of a ribbon herself in conjunction with Gambol Shroud.

Jaune leans back to answer without taking his sight away from the brawl, "You see, the fabric is actually Memory Cloth, run the right amount of current through it and it changes... flexible as silk but tough as steel."

"Like Batman's cape!" Ruby exclaims excitedly.

"Yeah. Like his cape." Jaune replies while holding back another chuckle. But in the second he glances at his fellow leader and turns back to see his little sister, the last of the androids have already been destroyed.

He's already in the action of getting up on his feet before the arrival of a new opponent turns his expression from joyous to grievous. His Spartan is the first to speak up in concern.

"A Spider Droid!"

_Clack clack clack clack! Clack clack clack clack!_

The Spider Droid slowly makes its way to the girl and stands in front of her, her expression seemingly unaffected by its imposing presence.

"Move, May... _move_..."

Yet, despite the lock-on from the two shoulder-cannons and arm-cannons, she waits until the very last moment to duck under the incoming concussive energy blasts and whips out Dual Fates at the arms. Hooking the ends around its metal appendages with her now visible electric semblance, she yanks both arm cannons downwards just as they fire again, causing it to misfire at its legs and maim itself.

Of course the crowd begins to cheer for the new favorite of the tournament, that is, until the giant android prepares its main mecha-shifting attack. But unfazed, May now twirls both ribbons around herself with visible forks of electricity shooting out around them.

"C'mon, Mister Spider..."

A seasoned opportunist, she waits until just before it finishes charging its attack before whipping both hooked ends of Dual Fates at the mega-cannon and courses her full force of her semblance through the ribbons, the massive energy forces meeting at the tip of the cannon causing the entire Spider Droid to explode in a shower of electricity just as Nora finished her list of models.

"...model cars, model equations, Modell's Sporting Goods, and role models-! Ohmygosh! That... was so _cool!_"

"Yep. That's my sis!" Jaune proclaims proudly as the audience erupts in enthusiastic cheers before directing himself to his teammate, "And no, she was a reader model."

"...Uhh?"

With a light chuckle, Ren finally decides to clear it up for her.

"Nora, remember watching Remnant's Next Top Model?"

"_Ohh!_" She finally responds in complete understanding, sending teams JNPR and RWBY into fits of laughter as they and team VNDS go down to meet with the newest Arc and her Dorme allies at the arena exit.

Now, Miss Goodwitch stands to take the mic and make the announcement.

"Victory goes to Miss May Arc! Congratulations! This marks the end of our first day's trials, we will continue the other half tomorrow. Thank you, and enjoy the Vytal Festival!"

With a final round of applause for the day's participants, the audience begins making their way out of the amphitheater as the three adults regroup above the arena floor.

"Yes, a great addition she'll be to Atlas' forces indeed..." The General muses from the platform as the girl exits.

"You sound as if the deed's already been done." The Headmaster replies cooly.

"I'm rather confident."

"Says the man whose academy has only contributed a grand total of two entrants to the tournament this year." Glynda cuts in. But instead of taking offense, Ironwood merely smirks before responding.

"Only two bothered to enter. One is a recruiter, she already went. And she'll definitely be meeting Miss Arc soon."

"And the other?" Ozpin asks, still managing to mask his curiosity behind idle small talk.

"Well, the _other_," the Atlesian leader begins with a slight chuckle, "is the contender who will win the tournament."

* * *

"This! Is! _Amazing!_~"

The ecstatic Valkyrie practically jumps in place, squeeing at the wondrous view the three teams come to find in team JNPR's dorm. They'd made plans to celebrate their first day of tournament there but never expected this surprise. Ice cream.

Ice cream _everywhere!_

"No way..." Blake begins blankly as she picks up the note left by one of the large tubs of butter pecan in the center of the dorm.

_Good Job! Nuff said that can't be said without ice cream._

_\- The C in CRDL_

"...Well that definitely changes the way I think about the guy."

"Yea, I know. I'm pretty awesome!"

Fourteen heads suddenly turn to see Cardin Winchester leaning against the threshold of the doorway with a proud smirk and arms crossed, followed by his three teammates with happy smiles and crossed arms of their own behind him.

"Didn't take much, nothing a kitchen raid with me and the guys couldn't take care of."

"Okay, bird boys," Yang begins, still not quite convinced, "what's the catch. These vats of goodness booby-trapped or something?"

Cardin simply holds his hands up placatingly and takes a step into the room.

"Nope. Just our way of sayin congrats, especially to the girl who knocked the four of us out of the running in one fight," and now turning to the blonde leader, he continues, "And also, it's a way to bury the ol' hatchet between the Spartan and me... You know what I mean, Jauney-boy."

And with an understanding grin, Jaune turns to his team and gives the nod as an okay to begin eating, which they all promptly do. Cardin really had come a long way since Forest Fall... apologizing for what he'd almost done to Pyrrha in the forest and being a good sport about being knocked out in the tournament spoke volumes about him.

"Oh, and I almost forgot," he adds suddenly while reaching for something behind him, "hey Shy Guy!"

Seul turns towards him.

"Seul, right? I had this given to me to leave you. Didn't see who it was, it was practically jammed into my hands after we got out the kitchen. Personally, I thought we were screwed, caught by a staff member or something, but whoever it was left in the blink of an eye leaving me this."

And handing the boy a small black pint of ice cream with a note on its lid, Cardin kindly excuses his team from the already large party and makes their way out.

"Wot is it, ol' chap?" Cipher asks, having spent most of the day chatting with his subject of affection still at Dorme, "Just one lil' tussle and y'already got ya some sorta proper followin' with the Beacon birds?"

"Ugh... _women!_" Nora states ironically, bemoaning women everywhere much to the befuddlement of the other girls in the room.

_A prize for your performance. Keep working on Iaido technique, sword drops a bit much on draw._

_-A Fan_

The boy merely looks down at the strange note, mentally rereading it and taking the advice to heart. But what really unsettles him is the fairly rare flavor of the frozen treat in his hands. Black licorice.

"It's... my favorite flavor of ice cream," the boy finally lets out, "Someone left it for me."

But no one knew that about him. Maybe a handful of people from his youth, but aside from his long-time childhood friend in the room, all were gone from his life. Still, he quizzically glances at Jaune who simply holds up both hands and responds.

"Wasn't me."

Ah well. Seul wasn't about to complain. Not everyday you get to enjoy one of very few pleasures you have in this world.

The boy joined the rest of his new friends in digging into the vats of ice cream around the room and enjoyed the rest of their first night of the Vytal Festival.

* * *

_Elsewhere in Vale..._

_"You're recording this, yes?"_

_"Yeah, but we're too far out to stream live, we'll have to wait to get back to the van to upload the feed."_

_"Ack, the signal is never strong enough around here!"_

_"And I don't get paid enough. But we make it work anyways."_

_"Hilarious... Hey, I think I heard something! Get the camera ready!"_

_"Alright, alright. We're rolling in 3... 2... 1..."_

_"Good evening! This is Cyril Ian with the Vale News Network coming to you with breaking news on the possible whereabouts of the missing people who have been disappearing over the past few weeks. We are deep in the forest somewhere between Vale and Dorme and have found overwhelming evidence of sporadic movement in these usually uninhabited areas. What's this 'evidence' you may ask?"_

_The VNN reporter picks up a few items at which the camera now focuses while the report continues._

_"Shoes, coats, glasses, all discarded recently judging by their appearance, but from who and why are yet to be determined. We can only hope that these folks have not succumbed to the perilous presence of Grimm in the area... Though as my cameraman and I have noted, we've not seen any sign of the creatures since entering the forest."_

_Now refocusing on the reporter, the camera catches his concluding statements._

_"The possibility remains, as speculation grows, that this string of disappearances is led by nefarious criminal Roman Torchwick who continues to evade authorities. If you have any information on his whereabouts, please contact the Vale Police Department."_

_"Aaand, cut."_

_"Excellent. Let's get out of here, this place gives me the creep- What was that?"_

_"I dunno, the rustling came from over there..."_

_"Let's investigate!"_

_"Ewhat!?"_

_"..."_

_"..."_

_The rustling merely continues until the reporter finds the surprising source._

_"Great Monty above, it's Lisa!"_

_"Impossible! I'll get my camera ready!"_

_"Oh dear, what a state you're in, my friend..."_

_The unkempt lavender-haired lady doesn't respond, simply remaining hunched over with her back to her old colleagues and seemingly digging around the damp forest floor aimlessly._

_"Uh... Cyril..."_

_"Come on, Hud, help me with her! Oh, she must be so distraught!"_

_"Um, Cyril, something doesn't feel right..."_

_The woman still doesn't look up but is now clearly aware of their presence, her only acknowledgment being a questioning growl._

_"Grr?"_

_"Oh, come off it Hud, this isn't Cloverfield!" The reporter quips impatiently, but pauses hesitantly as the growling now becomes noticeable._

_"Lisa... You alright?"_

_And standing up with her back still to them, the initial unease now grows into harrowing fear._

_"Grrrr..."_

_"M-My goodness," Hud stutters as she slowly begins to turn, "Her eyes! Th-They're-"_

_"...rrr-RRAAAWWRRR!"_

_The night passes on peacefully as a few birds fly away from the momentary agitation in the vast forests of Vale._

* * *

**A/N: Hi there! This sure took a while, Thanksgiving week has been pretty crazy... Barely got chapter 2 in my parody fic, The Games The Grimm Knight and A Friend in Need Play Before A Pyrrhic Victory done. Check it out if you'd like, lots of random shenanigans and crossovers heh :)**

**And I almost forgot, thank-you-note time!**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! And yes I'm an avid Sherlock watcher - definitely one of my many fandoms. Seriously, I'm like the Deadpool of fandoms... And yep, the next chapters will be a bit more complex which is why the titles are too!**

***ImSoAwesome: Thank you! There's a lot going on and more to come :D**

***Nick: Thank you! And you know what? That's a pretty good ship name, heh!**

***Lazercorn51104: Thank you! I love me some references :) and oh but I have! SAO reference has already been embedded in TVW, very subtle, but it'll be a pretty important element in Vol 3 ;)**

***Tommy2486: Thank you! I try my best, and yeah, I feel bad for Davin too...**

**In any case, next story will come out next week and after that then you can expect chapters to come out about as often as before! Lots of work goin into Volume 3 right now as well so bear with me as this volume rolls on ;) till then, take care and stay tuned for the next chapter, The Master Healer!**

**Happy Reading!**


	52. Vol 2-7: The Master Healer

_**The Trials, Pt VII**_

_"There's this constant whirlwind of motion and sound all around,  
__And then there's The Quiet One, the eye of the storm.  
__Too loud for words and too shy for the world."_

* * *

_Name, Velvet Scarlatina..._

_Affiliation, Beacon..._

_Weapon, Grif Shot..._

_Semblance, White Mage..._

Glynda Goodwitch's voice dies down on the loudspeakers in the amphitheater as the Huntress looks down from the platform at the shy bunny-faunus standing in the arena below her and her two colleagues. James Ironwood now takes the mic.

_Are you ready to commence your trial, Miss Scarlatina?_

The slender student nods at the General and unmounts a small wooden box slung across her back.

_Very well, let's begin._

As the General, Miss Goodwitch and her silver-haired partner exit the platform, the Huntress leans slightly toward the Headmaster.

"She had been building up her original weapon all of last semester only to trade it for such a brute replacement during The Valean War."

Not answering her question, Ozpin merely raises a brow with a small smirk before responding, "So, you've begun to name last semester's events 'The Valean War' as well?"

The icy glare he receives in reply convinces him to rephrase his answer.

"Erm, of course," he continues cooly, "they name the weapon Brute Shot for a reason. She seems to have taken quite a liking to it."

"Though I'm not so sure why she'd call it a '_Grif_' Shot..." Glynda muses rhetorically.

The Headmaster casts a furtive glance to the arena as they take their seats to hide his grin. He understands the reference perfectly.

_Beep._

The timid second-year trainee readies herself as the doors around her open to permit entry of her opponents. Velvet did indeed posses a more slender frame, a lean and agile body complimented by well-placed practical armor, and though her soft facial features and lustrous brown hair would suggest a young woman keener to looks than to combat she had no qualms in engaging opponents as a Huntress-to-be.

After previously taking over event security, Ironwood had already gone so far as to introduce a 'twist' to the first day's tournament rounds: pitting every entrant against a squad of Atlas' mechanized army as a final qualifier to enter the actual tournament, a way to test their grit in dispatching opponents to emulate as real of a 'War scenario' as possible, as he put it.

'_Alright, j-just a few robots and that's it..._' The shy student mentally states before suddenly freezing at the sound of subdued growling behind the darkness of the secondary doors around her.

'_Um, androids don't growl..._'

_And yes, _General Ironwood's voice now begins once more on the loudspeakers throughout the amphitheater, _there is a slight change in opponents for our second day entrants, and those who pass will continue in the tournament. Today's opponents will be packs of the creatures of Grimm._

And as he mentions the change of itinerary, Velvet notices several red eyes just behind the opened entryways appear, restrained Grimm ready to attack. She turns to the General in the seats above as he gives a final piece of advice.

_...So don't hold back._

The sounds of metal cages opening behind the doorways signal that the match has truly begun.

_RAWWWR!_

And just like that, a pack of a dozen Beowolves are attacking the young student who defaults to her strong leg-based offense to ward off several of the dark creatures. Taking one of the Grimm out of commission with a powerful spinning kick combo, she smashes the skull of another Beowolf in with a downwards strike of her wooden box before leaping back to the far side of the arena and away from the fray.

The Beowolves turn to look for her as she regrips her box which is now held low by her hips as she flicks off the heart-shaped lock on its side.

"He said not to hold back... Coco would agree."

Opening the box, the weapon rapidly begins to mecha-shift as the Grimm quickly approach into none other than a Type-25 Grenade Launcher with a large curved bayonet blade on its underside.

Yes, a Brute Shot.

"HIYAH!"

And engaging the remaining werewolf-like creatures, Velvet wreaks havoc on the pack with surprising strength and speed, swiftly twirling the Grif Shot above and around herself to dismember her opponents with the massive blade. A Beowolf breaks through and begins slashing at her, to which she holds out the sturdy body of her weapon to deflect its savage claw-based attacks before planting the blade in the ground and whipping herself around the Grif Shot to send it flying away with a lethal scissor kick.

Halves of Beowolves are beginning lo litter the arena grounds faster than they can dissipate, and with a few more slashes she is left with only one opponent, a particularly aggressive Alpha Beowolf with faster and smarter strikes that can counter the Grif Shot's advances. The duel continues on equal ground until the Alpha finally slashes through her defenses and grazes her left arm.

"Argh!"

Quickly glancing to her side, Velvet sees the gash left by the beast and has no choice but to channel her pale-green aura to the wound to get it to heal as quickly as possible while evading its subsequent string of claw-swiping attacks. Her offensive maneuvers are beginning to weaken due to diminished strength and the one-handed operation of the Grif Shot, forcing her to go on the defensive. But getting an idea, the bunny-faunus stays low as the large Grimm closes in and retreats towards a wall which prompts the large beast to follow at a full charge.

With little space left, she twirls her weapon backwards and up to fling it into the air as far as she can just before the Alpha Beowulf reaches her. Dodging a couple claw-slashes and twisting away from a lunge of its snapping jaws, she finally finds the opportunity to run back and perform an agile wall flip, running up the wall and rebounding off its high face with her powerful legs endowed by her Faunus heritage with superior strength over the large beast of Grimm. Landing just behind it in a low crouch, she stands to reach out for the falling Brute Shot as the dark creature turns around.

It doesn't stand a chance. In a split second, Velvet catches the weapon by its hilt and with the added momentum of gravity to make up for her weakened arm transfers the force into an uppercut-like swing of her bladed weapon through the underside of the Beowolf, essentially gutting it right through the middle before it even gets a chance to react.

"And that's _that._" She quietly mumbles to herself in satisfaction as the open wound on her shoulder finally closes.

But turning around, she sees that her troubles are far from over. Far, as in two dozen more Beowolves far.

"How is that a fair match?" Glynda asks the Atlesian leader with no small measure of contempt in the seats above the arena.

Unfazed, James responds as if he were used to her tone since long ago, "Relax, there are precautions set in place if any complications arise during these matches-"

"And I doubt she'll be requiring any of them," Ozpin adds from his seat, his gaze fixed on the unusually calm and collected student for a person in the face of such frightful odds, "Miss Scarlatina is an adept Mage who is and has always been of great value to her team. And I assure you, her abilities are not limited to the mere usage of her healing Semblance..."

And he was right. She was just getting started.

Reaching down for a small lever on the side of the Grif Shot, Velvet now loads a much more terrifying feature of the weapon than two dozen snapping jaws of dark death. She holds the weapon low beside her hip and glances up at the powers that be as her aura begins to glow around her as well.

"O Monty, bless this Thy grenade launcher, that with it Thou mayest blow Thine enemies to tiny bits... in Thy mercy!"

_Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!_

And in three seconds, four rounds from the Grif Shot detonate amid the crowd of advancing Grimm, separating them into smaller manageable groups which Velvet quickly begins to dispatch with the bladed end of her powerful grenade launcher.

Two or three such groups fall to the agile bunny-faunus before another round of grenades are launched to further divide the remaining dozen or so Beowolves. Several more are slashed into oblivion until only four are left. Alpha Beowolves, the whole lot of 'em.

Knowing that she can't stand a chance against them with her strength alone, she now resorts to weapon summoning techniques she had been practicing with the Grif Shot. Pumping her aura into the dangerous launcher, she completes her first mental command before the four beasts close in.

"Hold!"

And leaping away from the first claw-swipe, she leaves her weapon levitating where it had been held previously, her aura now keeping it in place in midair. Without any intention of engaging the creatures, she continues dodging and evading slashes and teeth with skilled flips and twirls around the Alphas until she finally gets to the other end of the arena, placing the Grimm right between her and her beloved launcher. All four Beowolves now charging at her for the kill, Velvet now raises both green-glowing hands at them as she gives her final command.

"Holy Seekers!"

And out from the grenade launcher that the bloodthirsty Alpha Beowolves had failed to pay attention to now come four consecutive grenade rounds, except these four are trailing a brilliant green aura that guides them like homing missiles from a missile launcher through the air at the four massive creatures of Grimm which are now in mid-pounce to tear the bunny-Mage who stands only a few yards from them to pieces.

_Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!_

And just before the first claw can reach her face, the aura-guided grenades make impact and completely disintegrate the four dark predators, showering the poor faunus-girl with black smoke which she tries to wave away as she begins to cough a little amid the fallout.

Once the mist clears and reveals the small student unscathed, the audience gets up on their feet in enthusiastic applause at the incredible display of weapon manipulation. But as Ozpin appears at the platform with little more than a solemn expression as he takes the mic, the applause dies down as an air of curious expectation overtakes the amphitheater.

_Miss Scarlatina, _the Headmaster now begins, _though your final maneuver proved capable of eliminating your final opponents, the manipulation itself drained your aura reserves to the red. Had your plan failed, you would've been utterly defenseless against any subsequent attack. Therefore, unfortunately, match victory must go to the opposing forces by rule._

Of course, the announcement doesn't sit too well with the audience, an outcome that apparently didn't sit well with the Headmaster either as the audience begins to boo in displeasure.

_In any case,_ the Professor now concludes, _Excellent effort, Miss Scarlatina. You'll doubtlessly be quite the force to be reckoned with during next year's tournament, not to mention in your continued career as a Huntress-to-be._

Boos finally giving way to supportive applause, the Headmaster gives the dejected student a rare smile of understanding, warming her spirits as she turns to exit the arena with a grin of her own.

"It's a terrible rule if you ask me," Glynda states coldly to her Atlesian colleague in the seats above, "in a situation such as this, the defeat of the Grimm should've given her victory."

"Yet, in a real-world scenario, such a bold tactic would've left her defenseless to any further altercation," Ironwood replies cooly.

"It is simply a tournament, not the battlefield," Ozpin now begins as he approaches them, "Her mastery of weapon manipulation and improving abilities as a Healer will have proved more than enough to warrant victory in either scenario."

"A stipulation which can be considered for review in next year's tournament," the General finally concedes, "but what truly intrigues me now is _how_ that young lady ever managed to come into possession of such a formidable weapon..."

The three adults letting their conversation dissipate wordlessly into individual trains of rhetorical hypothesis, they merely watch the young student making her way to the exit.

A second-year student, she'd expect to meet with her team at the exit of the arena to congratulate her impressive efforts and console her in regards to the technical defeat, but time and war had changed that for her long before.

The teams now waiting for her are Teams RWBY and JNPR with grins and open arms, another change in events which Velvet Scarlatina now finds herself happy to be a part of as she picks up her new weapon after its public debut and lets it mecha-shift back into a small wooden box.

* * *

Oh, not to forget her new teammates she had received during the year.

"Forget the stupid rules, that was _awesome!_" The blue-haired student states before his Monkey-Faunus partner joins in on their unique form of praise.

"Did i call it or did I _call_ it! Graduation with honors into the class of Badassery, with a double major on Pownage and Destruction!"

Joining teams JNPR and RWBY are Sun and Neptune followed closely by the Dorme warriors, each taking turns with the two teams before them to congratulate the timid healer.

"So I guess team VNDS is up next on the roster," Jaune observes thoughtfully as the groups now check their scrolls for the day's itinerary.

"Seems like it!" Ruby chimes in, "and we're the last four to go before that last guy from Atlas at the end of the day!"

"I find it strange that only he and that other student from yesterday were the only ones to enter the tournament from Atlas..." Blake muses before being cut off by her rambunctious partner.

"Well forget that!" Yang now speaks up heartily, "Right now we should be happy for Velv here and pissed at the dumb tournament regulations and stuff for her!"

"Yes," the Spartan now agrees though with a much more modest approach as she places a consoling hand on the bunny-girl's shoulder, "we're sorry for your loss."

"It was just..." The healer replies sheepishly with a shrug, "there were just so many."

"Well don't worry about it," Jaune now speaks up again, "Nothing that some more aura training can't help improve!"

It was training that Velvet had gotten used to already, studying weapon summoning and healing techniques in her spare time at the library or at the cafeteria, a habit she had built from her first year already. But in the month or so after The Valean War, she had taken in Jaune and Pyrrha with said training, occasionally giving the couple tips on manipulating their own weapons thanks to their respective Semblances. Pyrrha had used the healer's experience and advice well in her continued personal training, and Jaune had found it particularly useful in gaining greater control over his aura-projected weapons. Overall, she was improving herself, her own aura buffs and weapon control improving as well as her healing capacity.

"And with more weapon commands you can learn, you'll surely need little more to defeat similar odds in the future," Ren states simply.

"True," the bunny-faunus states as her gaze wanders above with a pensive pout, "but I believe I'm fine where I'm at with weapon summoning... I've gotten plenty of practice since attaining Grif Shot. It's been a great help." She grins as she holds the box tightly to herself in appreciation.

"What would ya train for, then?" Nora asks in curiosity.

"Mmm... My healing aura. There's more to be saved than there is to be killed out there, and I'm still an entire healing class away from Master."

"Hmm," Weiss now joins in at the topic of interest, "I recall one such lecture from Miss Goodwitch's class, there are four classes of Healer or something, right?"

Blake nonchalantly answers for the suddenly nervous Velvet who greatly respects the icy heiress despite the Schnee namesake, "Yes, Weiss. Basic, Expert, Advanced, then Master."

Nodding appreciatively, the older girl begins again, "R-Right! I advanced to Expert level earlier this year, much faster than any other Healer at Beacon, and reached Advanced class during the war not long after healing Viktor. Headmaster Ozpin says it's never been seen at my age and that I could become Remnant's youngest Master Healer before I graduate from Beacon."

The students take a moment staring blankly at the floor or ceiling, being mostly ignorant the in the subject of healing which causes the slightly upset healer to pout again before responding.

"There's only about a hundred Master Healers in the whole world!"

"_Oh! Wow!_" The chorus of awed exclamations begin from the group of students, the suddenness from the praise causing the girl to deadpan for a moment before letting out a small smirk of gratitude at their evident sincerity.

She really did appreciate them, their friendships had helped her so much in progressing as a Huntress-to-be, especially from her teammates. Truth is, she wanted to become a Master Healer because all she saw around Remnant was hurt and loss, and healing was how she was sure she could contribute while helping Hunters fend off the darker threats of the world with her unique skillset.

Faunus everywhere were suffering.

...A Master Healer could help them endure while helping solve the problem itself.

She had lost her first-year friends, Viktor Ylvis' team CFVY, as this timeline had placed him as leader.

...A Master Healer could've saved them if given the chance.

And team VNDS had lost its leader.

...As a Master Healer, Velvet would do her utmost to ensure that no one face the same fate that young man went through to turn The Valean War to their favor.

As the students now continue to congratulate her and playfully emulate her fighting style as everyone heads to their seats to watch the next contestant, the bunny-eared girl resolves herself to put her training into her healing abilities while helping what's left of her team to stay together as well.

'_This will be the year that I, Velvet Scarlatina, become a Master Healer._'

* * *

**A/N: Okay! All done, 50th chapter woohoo! And hello there, I hope you enjoyed Velvet's chapter :) I'll be back to my usual schedule of 2-3 updates per week hopefully, so yay! In recent news, lots of work has been going into Volume 3 which I hope to have finished by the beginning of RWBY's third season, and in the meantime I have updated my Table of Contents to reflect some new chapters I got in the works ;)**

**And in _other_ recent news, I'm taking this opportunity to call out you OC mongers out there for two OC slots in the story, first - second - third - or fourth year students that may (or may _not_, hehe) be from Beacon that pop up in the next Volume! They can be either male or female and you only have to submit one unless you have several ideas! I will pick two entries which are most compatible with the storyline I'm plannin and will average out the ages to get the age for the OC team being planned ;)**

**And now for some thank-you notes...**

***Tommy2486: Thank you! That means a lot and I appreciate any ideas you can throw at me ;)**

***ImSoAwesome: Thank you! And yeah, Seul and Shy Guy seemed to work heh :) who would know his favorite ice cream? ...we will find out with time.**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! And yeah I couldn't help the reference... The camera guy in Cloverfield is named Hud, too. Hehe :]**

***Lazercorn51104: Thank you! The reference is late in Volume 1, and Nope, I didn't bother trying to guess Velvet's weapon. I mean, I did at the beginning of TVW, but the Brute Shot seemed way more interesting if even Coco with her machine gun had to give Velvet her own moment for it in the show. So yeah, for now I'm sticking with the Grif Shot ;) As for Adam... Well... _Cough cough_**

**Anyways, feel free to check out my table of contents and my other active parody fic - The Games The Grimm Knight and A Friend In Need of Divergence Play Before a Pyrrhic Victory - through my profile! The public edition of this chapter will come out tomorrow! So take care, and until next time! :)**

**Happy Reading!**


	53. Vol 2-8: The Blacksmith

_**The Trials, Pt VIII**_

_"__A roadrunner's top speed is 20 mph while coyotes can reach speeds of up to 43 mph.  
__My whole childhood was a lie..."_

* * *

_Name, Neptune Vasilias..._

_Affiliation, Beacon..._

_Weapon, Trident..._

_Semblance, A Gamer's Mind..._

Headmaster Ozpin's voice dies down on the loudspeakers in the amphitheater as the silver-haired man looks down from the platform at the calm student standing in the arena below him and his two colleagues. Glynda Goodwitch now takes the mic.

_Are you ready to commence your trial, Mister Vasilias?_

The confident student takes out the compact staff slung across his back.

"Sure am, Professor Goodwitch. And might I add that you look very nic-"

_Well then, let's begin._

With an abrupt end to further formalities, Miss Goodwitch, General Ironwood and her silver-haired partner exit the platform. As they reach their seats in the spectator deck above, the General leans slightly toward the Huntress.

"Was that student trying to-"

"Shush."

Her quick hush does little to deter the amused leader's curious nature.

"But-"

"_Shush._"

"That one can be a bit of a... _Flirt_, for lack of a better word," the Headmaster cuts in to rescue his slightly flushed partner, "the teenage mind knows no boundaries."

"Very well, Ozpin, ruin the fun," the General states with an almost playful grin at the Huntress, "I haven't poked fun at our favorite disciplinarian in _ages_..."

"I haven't seen her struggling in such a degree to keep _calm_ in ages..." Ozpin echoes with an amused smirk of his own.

"Well right now, _I'm _struggling to see how _that_ student can keep calm with the odds he's about to face..." Glynda states gruffly, doing her best to change the subject before she loses control and big things get broken.

Sensing the hostility brewing just underneath his platinum blonde associate's surface, the General does well to sit back and play along as the doors around the blue-haired student below begin to open and the match is almost ready to begin.

"Hmm, maybe it really _does_ have something to do with that young man's Semblance."

"_Hah_," the Huntress replies with dry amusement, "Doubtful. That's a fake Semblance which he likely took from some obnoxious manga somewhere."

* * *

Elsewhere in the spectator stands, Sun nudges Jaune with a devious grin.

"I _totally_ got him that fake Semblance from a manga!"

* * *

"I'm pretty sure he _did_ get that fake Semblance from a manga," the Headmaster observes with a subdued grin. He knows exactly which one its from.

_Beep._

Further conversation is placed on reprieve as the commencement signal goes off for the match. Neptune now calmly expands his weapon into firearm mode and readies himself as his opponents enter the arena. Ursae. Another one of Ironwood's little 'twists' to the Tourney ever since he was appointed head of security.

The barrel of his gun which he holds up to his shoulder like a rifle now charges with static electricity, the white noise from the weapon escalating into a high-pitched hum just before it fires.

_BLAM! _

The first Grimm going down permanently with the deadly jolt, Neptune now leaps away to get a better vantage point as the bear-like creatures converge on his original firing point. More shots then rain down on the Ursae, dismembering many and killing a few while the student swiftly makes his way around the arena with as calm a mind as an expert player in a First Person Shooter game.

_BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!_

"Headshot! Headshot! Headshot! Man, I could do this all day! ..._whoa!_"

And dodging a quick paw-strike from a large Ursa that had tried to blindside him, he turns as he falls back and empties the electrical clip into the Grimm's bony mask, ensuring that it doesn't attack again. Switching out the small magazine at the bottom of the empty gun by its Magpul Ranger Plate, he swaps in the second of his three magazines which also serve as batteries for his electrically-based weapon.

Three more rounds take down two more Ursae before a dozen Beowolves enter the arena, each wolf-like Grimm smaller and faster than their target-like counterparts. Silently cursing his luck, Neptune decides to change tactics and mecha-shift his weapon into Guandao mode before re-engaging the Grimm. With his glaive-like blade out in front of him, he begins to go to work on the Beowolves, slashing and striking at the dark creatures with the electrified edge of the curved blade at its tip.

Suddenly surrounded by three Beowolves and the last Ursa, he opts for the easier targets and lunges at the nearest Beowolf, running it through the chest with his blade before any Grimm gets a chance to react and pulls out to begin blocking multiple paw and claw strikes with rapid twirls of his weapon's strong staff-like body. Taking the first opening he gets, he then swings his spear-like weapon in a wide arc, beheading a Beowolf before spinning and slashing downwards diagonally to slice another one in half before retreating and re-engaging the remaining Beowolves.

He's down to about three more Beowolves before a familiar voice from his monkey-tailed friend at the spectator stands catches his attention.

"Behind you, idiot!"

Turning around, he sees the charging Ursa just in time to turn and ready his weapon by turning it into trident mode and engaging all four beasts of Grimm at once. Using the trident tip like an experienced Korean Dangpa master, he catches a few wrists of the creatures between the prongs of his weapon and gives it quick twists, breaking the appendages of two of the Beowolves before dispatching them with the electric edges of his trident and turning back to his friend as he stabs the Ursa through its chest plate.

"Thanks, loser!"

But refusing to die, the Ursa continues trying to reach for the blue-haired student who is just out of arm's length due to the staff of the large trident he's holding on to that's sticking out of its midsection. Unable to dig in the weapon further, Neptune's about to pull it out when he's alerted to an approaching hostile presence from behind.

_RAWWWR!_

A final Beowolf. But still unfazed, the blacksmith merely holds the impaled Ursa in place and looks back at the advancing Grimm as the butt of his weapon opens up.

"Jeez dude, take a chill pill."

_BLAM!_

And with a round literally going through the Beowolf's open jaws, the electrical projectile goes off and blows the creature's head off, the rest of its body instantly evaporating like blowing out a candle light while the recoil of the discharge launches the weapon deeper into the Ursa's chest which finally extinguishes its life-force. Kicking away the evaporating Ursa carcass to pull out his trident, Neptune never notices the two Alpha Beowolves which had been stalking him around the edge of the arena ever since the pack of Beowolves had entered.

Now taking their chance, one of the Alphas pounce on the unsuspecting student and lands a good claw-strike on him. The force would usually be enough to tear a man to pieces where he stood, but since Neptune barely got the chance to activate his aura, it was enough to shield him from death but not enough to keep the force of the strike from sending him flying several yards away and landing on his back on the arena grounds.

Wiping blood off his temple as he gets up, he knows that his aura level isn't far from red and acts quickly. Before the first Alpha can reach him, he reaches into each of his jacket sleeves and pulls out two small disc-like devices, arming them with a push of each thumb and deftly flinging each one like throwing stars at the approaching Grimm. The devices detonate in two balls of potent electricity with enough power to stop a man's heart, which on the Alpha Beowolf that has no heart serve to vaporize the creature in its tracks.

"Hah!" The ecstatic student exclaims as he fist pumps and then picks up his weapon in gun form to aim at his final opponent, "Like a ninja!"

And pulling down his yellow-tinted goggles, he now charges his weapon fully, a large MegaManCannon-like ball of energy forming at its end before he finally unleashes its full force at the charging Alpha. But being faster than it looks, it suddenly dodges the blast which takes out a sizable chunk of the arena wall behind it. Neptune dodges its initial lunge and falls back to check his mag.

"The whole clip in one blast? Jeez!"

And reaching down for his final magazine, he freezes in dismay as he realizes that it isn't there. His weapon is now powerless against the massive Grimm which now pounces on him again and slams the student back against the wall with a savage claw-strike.

Neptune knew that was it. His aura was in the red and he had lost.

_But who on Remnant was gonna tell that to this massive Grimm!?_

The Alpha Beowolf has him pinned to a wall and gives out a deafening roar of victory. He winces as the beast, which is said never actually needs to eat, as it now opens its fearsome jaw and readies itself to take a large bite out of his pretty little head just for kicks until suddenly he hears a small timer go off inside the Grimm's head.

And with an unnatural jerk, the Grimm freezes and then falls back, the red in its eyes suddenly extinguished as its whole body fades away leaving the surprised student to sink to the ground while the General reappears on the platform to take the mic.

_Mister Vasilias, _Ironwood begins as if he were a host of a harmless Cake Wars show from the Food Network, _you were unable to defeat the full allotment of Grimm opposing you and as a result your Aura dropped to the red. For safety, of course, every captured Grimm used in this tournament has a small but potent explosive charge implanted in their skull to ensure no exceptionable injury occurs in the event of a contestant's defeat. That being said, victory goes to the opposing forces. Thank you for your participation._

Doing his best to keep his cool, Neptune stands and makes his way over to his weapon, mentally kicking himself for forgetting to pack his third battery and wondering what happened to it until-

"Ugh! The stupid karaoke machine! _Weiss!_"

* * *

Everything came back to memory at once. The previous night, Teams RWBY, JNPR and friends had gathered in JNPR's dorm to celebrate the first day's victories with a surprise ice cream party. Of course, to avoid the brawler's terrible puns and antics, the heiress avoided the frozen desserts and didn't seem to enjoy herself until her red-cloaked leader hatched a plan.

Not many things in Remnant made Weiss truly content. Of the things that did - as far as her friends were aware of - there were festivals, cute pets, and singing. And fluffy shark plushies.

Having previously played all her other cards, Ruby had come back with the brand new machine into Jaune's dorm, eliciting an immediate positive response from Jaune, Pyrrha, Yang and not surprisingly squeals of joy from Nora and Weiss. The rest of the students tried to stay back but each got their turns singing everything from Daddy Yankee to Big Bang until the battery died.

And that's when it happened. For the first time Neptune could remember, the snowy-haired girl came up to him, knowing of his weapon's electrical nature and its use of potent batteries, and pleaded for one with a pout and big puppydog eyes. Even Ruby had to admit she had taught the Heiress well. Her face was absolutely adorable.

And who could've said no to that? _Who could've said no to that?_

Of course Neptune tried to say no, but didn't get the chance as Weiss had swiftly reached around his back pant pocket and took the battery without an answer, rushing over gleefully to the machine and speedily rewiring the battery compartment with impressive precision.

And so, the night went on. The reward? The students were graced to the wondrous vocal performance of the Schnee Heiress, who was used to singing for an audience and reveled in the opportunity to do so once more with renditions of the classics like 'Red Like Roses', 'Mirror Mirror', 'From the Shadows', and 'I Burn'. And later she even moved on to other genres, singing songs like 'Clarity' by Foxes and an entire Paramore Medley.

* * *

But Neptune didn't realize this would be the result. Oh, well.

He walks off the arena to reunite with his friends, glad that at the end of the day he's still alive. And that if nothing else, the Grimm at least didn't go for his face.

"Sorry, Neptune," Weiss quickly apologizes the moment he reaches the teams and Dorme fighters waiting for him at the arena exit, which surprises just about everybody.

Of course, everyone knows what she did, but as they look at the girl whose gaze isn't leaving the floor as she sheepishly rocks back and forth with both hands daintily held behind her back, her team realizes that it's the first time they hear her apologize without having it demanded from her first.

"Ah well, it's okay... After all, it was just _pain_."

The girl uncharacteristically groans in dismay at the touch of sarcasm, but since she's not looking up she doesn't realize that the blue-haired subject of her interest is only joking.

"Weiss..."

The heiress finally looks up with the smallest of pouts at the weary student.

"...I'm just kidding," and now he holds out both arms in invitation, "C'mon, let's hug it out."

And without hesitation, she grins and latches onto him like her favorite bedside shark plushie causing a few of the students to snicker. Unknown to Weiss - yet - Yang had sent pictures of the girl sleeping with her favorite plush toy held snugly by her side to all of them. And now, she's no less apt to making the most out of this golden opportunity as she speaks up.

"Ya kinda like him, don't ya, Ice Queen? You wanna huuug him~ You wanna daaate him~ You wanna kiiiss him~ You-"

"Uuuugh," the flustered heiress nudges her face into Neptune's shoulder so that no one can see her blush, her muffled voice still coming through icy as ever, "_Shut up, Xiao Long!_"

"_Yeah_," Neptune joins in with mock offense but actually loving every second of it on the inside, "_shut up, Xiao- _okay okay!"

And he cuts himself off as a raised eyebrow and cracking knuckles from the blonde brawler persuade him to play it safe, even if her teammate is still clinging onto him.

"Hehe," Cipher now begins with a very amused chuckle, "you had the same face just now as when that beastie was about to maul yer head off, mate!"

"Very amusing, Fergusson."

And now his teammates, Sun and Velvet, walk over as a satisfied Weiss finally pulls back and shuffles quietly back to her team. Sun puts a hand on Neptune's shoulder with a seemingly sincere expression of condolence on his face.

"Don't worry, Blue-tard," yeah, so much for 'sincerity', "just remember... '_Fear_ is just _Hero_ spelled backwards'!"

"_Haaah_, Monkey made a funny!" Neptune replies sarcastically, playfully shoving Sun back as everyone else can't hold back their laughter any longer.

And with the laughter finally subsiding, it's a chuckling Velvet who walks up to him and sighs in understanding.

"Really though, don't worry... You and I are on the same boat now."

And pulling the girl who he and Sun had come to regard as their wallflower older sister in for a side hug, the blue-haired blacksmith agrees whole-heartedly, "yeah, our luck kinda sucks sometimes."

"Hah, speak for yourselves, dudes!" Sun cuts in with a confident grin, "_I'm _going next, and I'm pretty darn sure I'm gonna go in there and kick some serious-"

"_As_ I was saying before, Neptune," Velvet now interrupts as she deadpans at Sun, "S-Sometimes the world doesn't play fair, and _some_ people may not care to notice. Like our friend Sun here. Those are the times you keep your head up high..."

And every student's curiosity is piqued as they see the usually timid bunny-faunus grin fiendishly at her monkey-tailed teammate before concluding.

"...and your middle finger higher!"

Gasps of surprise quickly turn to even louder laughter as Velvet completes her first comeback ever by smiling and playfully sticking her tongue out at Sun.

"Who'd have known our Velveteen Rabbit was so _scandalous!_" Yang calls out between fits of laughter. The shy girl had really come a long way since her solitary days as an infirmary assistant.

"She even put the guy on Hush Mode... And this coming from _me_..." Seul adds with a chuckle.

"I guess we know how she dealt with those bullies all these years without harming anyone," Pyrrha states with a warm smile.

"Well," the brown-haired healer continues, "I've always had plenty of Grimm to take my frustrations out on... And plenty of _vagabonds_, too," she adds with a wink at Sun.

"Alright, alright, no need to go Rage Mode and all that junk here, I get it..." Sun replies grinning with his hands held out placatingly in front of him.

"Just kidding, I promise I won't. But good luck!" Velvet concludes as she and the rest of the students part ways with the vagabond who then makes his way into the arena.

* * *

**A/N: And this chapter goes out with full references to The Gamer! Neptune fight, a little banter at the end, just character development as time goes on which will come in handy as things start picking up again in Vol 3! I love that stuff, heh :D And also, thank you guys so much for your OC submissions! In just one day I already have about a dozen submissions which will make choosing just _two_ of them VERY difficult o.O So, that being the case, I'll be considering making an entire new OC team as well (well maybe not entirely 'OC', cuz we gotta ask ourselves, 'what ever happened to the rest of team SSSN?' hehe) so yea, feel free to pm me with ideas!**

**Brief recap, I'm considering expanding available OC slots from 2 to possibly _6_ openings. :) I'll decide by end of Volume 2, at which time I will stop accepting new submissions. So there's still plenty of time ;) I'm available through pm to answer questions! Now for some thank-you notes!**

***Tommy2486: Thank you! And I'm hyped up too! I've got some surprise appearances and matches planned once the tournament goes to contestant vs. contestant mode that I hope you guys like! :)**

***Ashurí Brighty: Thank you! ...and yes, that _is_ a good idea... But you never know ;)**

***Nick: Thank you! And HAH that's so awesome that someone got the reference! :D**

***Lazercorn51104: Thank you! You have plenty of time to submit your ideas so no worries! And yeah, Velvet and the Grif Shot feel like a good pair ;) and also, taking this opportunity while I'm writing about Velvet (and while _you_, dear reader, are reading about her) I'd like to clarify about her semblance. According to Monty, she's a Mage. According to me, she's a healer. Add the two, and you get a White Mage! She has pretty good healing buffs and as you saw in her chapter, other buffs that'll be expanded on as time goes by ;) and I'm not super familiar with the Twitch platform, but for everyone reading who gets a chance, check out LazerCorn51104's profile, name is as written!**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! And twists there will be... ;)**

***ImSoAwesome: Thank you! And yes, I think Velvet is pretty awesome, too XD**

***Juju-sama: Thank you! Opal is a wonderful submission and I'm honored for your consideration in submitting your idea to TVW! :)**

**So yep, I'm back on track with chapters so stay tuned for the next one! Stay tuned for more updates!**

**Happy Reading!**


	54. Vol 2-9: The Vagabond

**_The Trials, Pt IX_**

_"When life gives you lemonade, make lemons.  
Life will be all like... WHAAAT!?"_

* * *

_Name, Sun Wukong..._

_Affiliation, Beacon..._

_Weapons, Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang..._

_Semblance, RageKong's Rage Quit?..._

The echo from General Ironwood's voice on the loudspeakers dies down inside the amphitheater as the somewhat confused Atlesian leader looks down from the platform at the surprised monkey-faunus standing in the arena below him and his colleagues. Ozpin takes the mic but is interrupted before he can speak up.

"Heeey, that's not right! I make, like, aura clones of myself and stuff with my semblance!"

..._Do they rage quit as well? _The Headmaster casually asks in amusement, causing the spectators to erupt in laughter around the arena. The monkey-tailed student merely throws his arms up in frustration.

"WHY do people keep assuming I rage quit all the time! How did that junk even get in my Semblance info _in the first place!?_"

* * *

In the spectator stands, Neptune and Blake fistbump each other with fiendish grins, the former having supplied the awesome reference idea and the latter having made the last minute switch with the original student data using her stealthy ninja skills.

* * *

_Are you ready to commence your trial, Mister Wukong?_

"_Yesss_..." The student replies with heavy tones of barely-contained irritation.

_Excellent, we will begin shortly._

As the Headmaster, the Huntress and the General exit the platform to take their seats in the decks above, the silver-haired man leans toward his platinum blonde partner with an ever so slight grin.

"Glynda, I'd like for you to implement a slight change in the rules for this match..."

"Change? More than I've already made?" The Atlesian leader states with some curiosity.

Ever since having been named head of security, James Ironwood had already added his own 'twist' to this year's Vytal Tournament initial round: every entrant would be facing a pack of live Grimm as a qualifier to enter into the knockout stages of the tournament itself. It was a gladiator-like element he had been wishing to add for years to test the grit of this generation's Hunters and was now reveling in the opportunity to do so.

"Not by much," the Headmaster now continues, "instead of letting all the Grimm charge at once, only let three or four enter at a time..."

"But that would make for a very long match, Ozpin," Glynda protests, to which his knowing smirk returns.

"Precisely... Anything to make him... Impatient..."

Having caught on to the Professor's plan after going off of the fake semblance he had just read, the General can't help but chuckle at the opportunity for raw entertainment, "Ozpin you sly dog! Setting him up for a rage quit in front of a worldwide audience?"

"James, please. I merely thought it'd be nice for everyone to witness such a possibly humorous event!"

The disciplinarian shakes her head, unable to believe how childish the Headmaster of the world-renowned Beacon Academy could be.

"You and your silly antics..."

"My students love me."

A very audible facepalm from the Huntress is heard before she inputs the commands into her tablet, but not before having her attention called by her superior who flashes her a final fiendish smile.

"Oh, and Glynda dear?"

"_Yesss_..." She replies with a tone not very unlike the Monkey-Faunus before her.

"You _might_ want to activate the Expletive Censorship program along the arena barriers as well. There are children attending."

* * *

_Beep_.

"Alright," Sun now begins confidently as he pulls out his weapon from behind, "Loosey goosey, weapon loaded, abs tight - oh so tight - check, check, and BIG EFFIN' CHECK!"

And watching three large Ursae suddenly charge in from the far side of the arena, he lifts his staff in the air like the beloved stick-figure meme that had gone viral all around Remnant for the past few months.

"Ima kill _ALL_ the Grimm!" He cries out, eliciting cheers from the crowd.

Charging the three bear-like Grimm, he goes to work, using masterful bojutsu techniques to down the three Ursae with thunderous explosions from every point of contact with his weapon which causes dismemberment and massive internal hemorrhaging in all three opponents before they finally drop dead.

"Hah. You're my BEAR rugs now, _biz-nitches_." Sun gloats as he leans on a large bone spike over the dissipating Ursa carcass' back and peels a banana before putting half in his mouth.

"How could you be _eating_ at a time like this!?" A surprise voice calls out from behind at which Sun quickly turns to find belongs to Blake as three more Ursae enter the fray.

Unable to respond due to the fruit in his mouth, he throws the banana peel at the nearest Grimm causing it to trip and fall before he hops up on it and dispatches the other two from the top of the third one's back and then leaps up into the air and brings his staff down on the skull of the third's with a loud _crack_.

And with impressive strength and speed, he then proceeds to perform a series of spinning kicks on the downed Grimm's back spikes, each one cracking off and flying into the arena wall just under the catgirl like a successive pole-ladder. Dashing quickly at his makeshift construct, Sun then uses his arms and tail to flip around and over each embedded spike like a gymnast before landing on the top one just below the deck, leaning over the top of the arena wall right in front of Blake as he swallows the first half of his banana with a smirk.

"Cuz I'm random like that... Seriously, I do crap like this ALL the time! Example: Speed-Response Contest, go!"

Blake deadpans at him, her gorgeous amber orbs glinting as she realizes he's not joking.

"You're serious."

"Yep!"

How Sun convinces Blake to do things her reserved and introverted personality would normally reject in a heartbeat with his enthusiastic attitude is beyond her. But unwilling to back down from her favorite challenge despite the situation, the following back and forth only takes about five seconds as the next round of Grimm appear below.

"You're on."

"Kay. First name of the Prince of Bel Air!"

"_Will_."

"Next letter after T!"

"_U_."

"Opposite of stop!"

"_Go_."

"Three strikes and you're-"

"_Out_."

"Area of a rectangle: length times-"

"_Width_."

"Do Re-"

"_Mi_... wait a minute..." She suddenly realizes everything she just said, her blush now beginning to grow as Sun's grin widens to comic proportions.

"Of _course_ I will, Blakey!"

And her blush only becomes worse after he hops down to face the oncoming Grimm and finishes his banana but not before calling back, "And don't worry, I promise not to disappoint, my sweet Ninja of Love!"

His charm has its desired effect, but all she can do now is hide her flustered face behind her hands and drown out the wolf-whistles from the spectators around her along with the howling laughter of her teammates and friends beside her. Yeah, she likes him... So why not?

Three more Ursae down, Sun continues bearing down on the oncoming waves for about ten more minutes until after the fifth or sixth group of Grimm. At this point, the cracks in his temper begin to show, much to the amusement of the silver-haired man above.

"Oh, COME ON, MAN!" The irritated faunus-boy calls out as yet another creature of Grimm meets its violent end, "WHEN WILL THIS END!"

His only reply is three Alpha Beowulves that enter from the far side of the arena and promptly charge him, to which he deadpans and finally snaps.

"WHOOP-DEE-F***ING-DOO!" Sun shouts in frustration throwing his arms up as his cursing is muted by a loud _beep_ from the arena, "ANOTHER LEVEL!"

"There we go..." The Headmaster states with evident mirth from his seat.

"WHA- DID I JUST GET _CENSORED!?_" The angered student looks up at the walls for the source of the sound but at a heavy price, suddenly getting swatted to the side with a heavy claw-strike and shouting while flying through the air, "B*******TCH!"

Standing up after having the brunt of the strike shielded by his aura, Sun stares down the three Alphas which turn their hungry gazes on him as well, "OH IT'S ON NOW, MOTHERF***ERS!"

And setting his sights on the larger of the three, with a quick dash and lethal staff-strike the Monkey-tailed contestant pretty much renders the first giant Beowulf immobile as he slams the second "LITTLE SH*T" into the third Alpha, and with a large swinging arc of his staff shatters the necks of all three downed beasts in one go, "THREE IN A ROW, A**WIPES, I WIN!"

"Alright, let the rest in at once," the General remarks to the Huntress before the rain of _beeps_ continues.

"Aw, F***BERRIES," Sun watches as two dozen assorted Beowulves and Ursae of different sizes suddenly enter the fray, his rage now reaching new heights, "IT'S A POTPOURRI PARTY OF F***ING HORSESH*T!"

Surrounded by several Beowulves, Sun promptly goes to work.

"NononoNO_NOPE!_" He exclaims with each successive staff-deflection at the flurry of claw-strikes around him, each Grimm missing its mark as he now goes on the offensive and wields his staff in a long-ended grip, "YOU COME TO MY HOUSE? YOU BRING YOUR SH*T TO MY HOUSE!?", and one by one the Beowulves go down with crushing blows as he twirls his weapon above and around his head and begins to dispatch the Grimm around him until being pushed back into the defensive by the tournament's first Ursa Major.

* * *

"I'm not sure he's going to make it..." Blake states with some worry to the blue-haired student beside her.

"Ten to one odds says he _will_," Neptune responds confidently as he hands Weiss a wad of lien to his other side.

The catgirl deadpans at him, her glare of disapproval definitely fulfilling its purpose of unsettling her victim.

"You kiddin' me with that weird look? At this point, not much can stop him... He's practically _Monkey King_ right now!"

"And that's where all the cursing is coming from?"

"Pretty much. Only happens on rare occasions, though. Like when he plays impossible video games. But you know him, he's usually less jerk-ish."

Blake raises a brow at the loud-mouthed monkey-faunus who has frankly impressed her with his incredible martial artistry thus far... it brings back to her mind his memorable bout against Roman and several White Fang during the previous semester.

It wasn't something many people knew, but the raven-haired girl had always been into guys who could really fight and she had to admit Sun was surely one of them. And being able to hear his uncensored exclamations with her enhanced faunus senses, she had to admit that his raging was pretty funny. Definitely a plus.

"Alright, I'll take some of that action," she finally remarks, pulling out another wad of lien from her pocket to the snickering heiress.

"_Fools_, the whole _lot_ of you dunces..." The gambling-inclined Schnee cackles as she takes the extra dough with a devilish grin. She's a billionaire heiress... can't hide that kind of flaw forever.

* * *

Back in the arena, Sun quickly sizes up the massive Grimm with extra claws and numerous spikes protruding from different parts of his body, but his rage drives him forward before he even realizes it.

"WHAT UP, SHREDDER!" He calls out as his rapid weapon makes contact a few times with the giant paws before a back-handed swipe sends him skidding back. And before he can even recover, he has to flare out his aura to deflect a devastating paw-strike from above which only seems to frustrate him more, "Now he's trying to make me the Ninja Turtle in his turtle soup!"

One strike "AGH!" and another "D*MMIT!" go blocked by the Ursa Major and the other Grimm are already getting into position to pounce before the angry student decides to switch tactics, "SWISS F***ING CHEESE, I'VE _HAD_ IT WITH YOU JERKOFFS!"

And slamming his staff to the ground just before several Beowulves around him pounce, the shockwave emanated by the blast created pushes them all back for just long enough for Sun to unlock his staff at the middle to become nunchucks made of sawed-down shotguns. The remaining wolf-like Grimm don't stand a chance as his rapid-twirling gunchucks now cripple the several of them close range as their shotgun rounds dispatch the remaining ones from afar.

Finally, with only two Ursae remaining he takes a quick moment to reload his gunchucks when he notices one of the Grimm have a strange marking on its chest plates... "Hah, looks like the USS Enterprise Command insignia. D*UCHEBAG."

Charging it with glee, he easily dodges, ducks, dips, dives, and dodges around its wild paw-swipes before going on a relentless offense, breaking nearly every appendage - to the watching Nora's delight - and shouting as he does it, "FIGHT BACK PICARD! FIGHT BACK YOU USELESS PIECE OF SH*T!"

And quickly ending his opponent with a gunchuck discharge to the throat, he swings a nunchuck back to engage the second Ursa he was sure was to his side when the large beast unexpectedly chomps down on his golden weapon from behind. Of course, the rage flares before all else.

"AGH! LEGGO MY EGGO, YOU F*CK!" He cries out before realizing the Grimm's fangs are held down around the the pull-action lever which triggers the gun, so all he does is yank it back which causes the shotgun to fire and literally blow the beasts cranial innards all over the Monkey King's face, causing him to yell even more, "MONTY DICKIE B*TCH OUM, F***ING BUY DINNER _FIRST_, A**HOLE!"

"Nice going, loser!" His blue-haired friend calls down from the stands above.

"_SHUT UP,_ YOU USELESS HETEROSEXUAL!"

_RAWWWR!_

Quickly turning, the nearly spent faunus-boy catches sight of his remaining opponent, the single Ursa Major that simply refuses to die as it reads up on its massive hind legs near the edge of the arena.

"RAWR? Is RAWR all you _got!?_" Sun yells, his energy and aura nearly depleted as he performs one final maneuver - a dash and leap leading to some wall-running before evading a paw-swipe by leaping up and over its second strike towards the giant beast.

"HOW 'BOUT A PAIR OF GUNCHUCKS _TO THE FACE!_" He adds as he lands on its giant head and shoves both Riyu Bang and Jingu Bang into its raging red eye sockets, "GERONIMO, MOTHERF***ER."

_Bang Bang!_

And with a harrowing groan, the lifeless beast tumbles down to a thundering crash as Sun hops off and lands right in front of the platform where Miss Goodwitch now appears and takes the mic amid thunderous applause and cheers.

_Match victory goes to Sun Wukong! Congratulations! _But swiftly cupping the mic with her hand, the disciplinarian then turns to face Sun with a stern expression and continues, "Eighteen occurrences of obscene language on global television, Mister Wukong. Expect detention."

"F*CK!"

"Nineteen."

* * *

A few minutes later, the slightly less tense fighter meets up with his teammates and teams RWBY and JNPR outside the arena. Weiss is angrily handing Blake and Neptune brick-sized stacks of lien while Yang unexpectedly speaks up first.

"So, uh. I guess you must be glad that all that fighting - and talking - is over huh..."

"Yeah, sorry for that, guys. Not sure why it got to me and all." Sun replies while sheepishly scratching the back of his head.

"Don't worry. Here, have a drink!~" the brawler hands him a popular brand orange juice bottle which he takes with his tail and starts to chug. However, only her teammates catch the blonde's all too familiar grin as she continues.

"I saved it just for you, _Sun_-ny D. Sailor!~" the terrible pun manages to send all the students around them into fits of laughter as the Monkey-faunus himself gags on his drink in surprise.

"GRKPFFT!" He then chucks the bottle away, narrowing his eyes at the brawler, "OUM _D*MMIT_, YANG!"

"Twenty!" Glynda suddenly calls out from behind the arena exit, having yet to have returned to her seat with her colleagues and having been alerted by the unexpected beep from the still-active censoring program.

"You know what. Forget you guys." Sun now turns and begins to walk away, "and I am leaving... _In a HUFF!_"

"You kept that drink on you this whole time _just_ for that moment?" Weiss remarks at the grinning brawler disapprovingly.

"Yyyep~"

"You're incorrigible."

"Hehe, might wanna go get your boy there before he goes Donkey Kong on someone, Kittycat~" Yang quips sideways at her amused partner.

"I'm on it."

* * *

"You gotta admit, that _was_ pretty funny."

"GAH!" Sun jumps as he walks, startled by the sudden presence by his side. Much more so as he realizes the voice is Blake's, who he's pretty sure hasn't actually _initiated_ a conversation in all her days at Beacon...

"Jeez! Ya scared me, Blake!"

"Sorry," she replies with a barely-hidden smirk, "are you still mad?"

"Whaddaya think?" He continues walking with his gaze set forward and fists clenched until he feels Blake unexpectedly wrap her arm around his, to which he turns to her with a growing blush, "Wh-Wh-What're you doing?"

She responds to his question with another question nonchalantly, "Is it making you feel better?"

"Y-Yeah, actually."

"Then I'm helping you feel better." She states flatly before a small smile creeps onto her lips, "Besides, you tricked me into asking you out, remember? Now you'll have to deal with the consequences."

He isn't about to complain. As they reach the half-way point around the outer rim of the amphitheater, Sun sighs and gives in to his companion's good intentions.

"Yeah, it _was_ pretty funny."

Blake snickers before responding, "Though is wasn't as funny as you beating down Picard in the arena."

Unable to hold back their laughter, they continue walking with mirth before Sun raises a brow and turns to his raven-haired friend, "You know, for a really cute girl, you have a pretty dark sense of humor."

Still walking with her arm around his, she merely tilts her head to the side to flash him a coy smile, nearly resting it on his shoulder, "Yes. I know."

"Yeah, I'd have one too if I had come from following a cult or something."

She flashes him a glare, but it doesn't have its usual strength.

It's tough for her to explain, but she likes that he gives her the time of day despite her usually quiet personality or rare moments of darker humor. Each are byproducts of her past life, along with her usual distaste for proximity, but after The Valean War and the increasing amount of time they've spent together, she finds it progressively easier to be near him.

Sure her team had also accepted her way back, flaws and all, but Sun was the first _guy_ to do so, and she let herself show him that she appreciated him for that. Spending a weekend with him in Vale the first time they met, going with him to the dance, letting him take her to her favorite coffeeshop/bookstore in town after the war... to be honest, becoming an item with him didn't seem so far-fetched at this point anymore.

Of course, Sun doesn't really know that yet, just like he doesn't notice the next antic she's planning until he feels his tail suddenly seized by nimble fingers.

"Look, I have a moustache!"

He chuckles as he turns to see her holding the end of his monkey tail under her petite nose, making it look like she really does have a blonde moustache.

"There, is that humor less dark?" She adds with an uber-moe cat-grin as she releases his tail from her grip. Sun has to admit that seeing her actually _trying_ this hard is the most adorable thing ever.

But the smug monkey-faunus just rolls his eyes, "Sure. Whatever."

Earning himself a light punch in the shoulder, the mild sting of pain is promptly replaced with the soft pressure of the catgirl's action of laying her head on his shoulder. _Well that's a first..._ the surprised faunus-boy internally muses as a soft blush tinges his features.

"I-Um, Uh," he begins, trying to gather his thoughts as they approach the entryway to get back to their seats, "I'm sorry for cursing, by the way. Still gotta work on it."

"Ohh... about that..." Blake begins slowly.

Sun doesn't see his silent companion grin at the golden opportunity, as Yang usually puts it, that has opened up right beside her. He rears back as she suddenly picks her head up and hands him a stick of gum.

"...dirty mouth? Clean it up with Orbit!"

The halls echo with the angry exclamations as the Monkey King throws his arms up again.

"_FUUUUU-!_"

* * *

**A/N: Hey there! In case you didn't notice, that random underlined word in the middle of the chapter marks the Two HUNDRED _THOUSANDTH_ word in TVW! Thanks for reading up to this point, more to come! :) Now I'm not gonna lie, this is my guilty pleasure chapter which I had to write after watching all the Rage Quit episodes on RosterTeeth hehehe... Anyways, I hope you liked it, and I'm trying to keep it T for Teen so please don't hate me for censorship!**

**Anywho, now for some thank you notes!**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! Awesome Nasuverse references in your submission! :)**

***Warmach1ne32: Thank you! And it looks so awesome, thanks much! :D**

***Juju-sama: Thank you for your review! And yes, yes she is :)**

***Lazercorn51104: Thank you! And don't worry, you haven't spilled any beans. The way I see it, if you expect the unexpected then expect your expectations to be unexpectedly blindsided beyond expectation ;)**

***RononDexSpecialist: Thank you for your review! And in the words of Castor from Tron - "We, Shall, See" ;)**

**Also, to Nick and the other guest who posted the review involving Interstellar, I'm sorry I couldn't let your reviews reach public eye! You know how in the Roosterteeth website they gray out some people's comments cuz they are pretty much spot on? Yea, it was pretty much that. **

**In other news, OC submissions are still open until the end of Volume 2 so feel free to drop an idea or two in my inbox! If you don't have a submission, you can always drop a review and give a fave or follow :) till next time!**

**And Happy Reading!**


	55. Vol 2-10: The Iron Cryptic

_**The Trials, Pt X**_

_"Don't underestimate the seductive power  
__of a decent vocabulary, ol' chaps."_

* * *

_Name, Cyrus Fergusson..._

_Affiliation, None..._

_Weapon, Iron Cipher..._

_Semblance..._

The echo from Miss Goodwitch's voice on the loudspeakers dies down in the arena as the Huntress looks down from the platform at the nerdy-looking civilian clad in brown cargo pants and a pale green sweater and armed with nothing but a small metal briefcase by his side.

_It's blank, Mister Fergusson._

The cryptic looks up at her, scrunching his face as he niftily pockets his opaque spectacles and revealing his bright hazel eyes.

"Oh, wassat _supposed_ to be filled out, Miss G? Thousand pardons."

_Can you even manipulate your aura? _The Disciplinarian questions with a fair measure of incredulity, partly due to how this young man could've survived an ordeal such as The Valean War without it and partly due to how lightly he takes the situation.

"Ah, right then!" He begins with a grin and snap of his fingers as if understanding for the first time, "so it's a slot to enter special abilities like aura usage and all that barmy brill? Why didn't anyone bloody tell me!"

The silver-haired Headmaster and Atlesian leader on either side of Glynda pay close attention as the unassuming speaker continues with his naturally engaging accent.

"Yeah, let's see... I tinker. And, I'm great with British humor in case ya birds and blokes didn't know!" he then turns to face the audience above and around him in the amphitheater as he puts his briefcase down, "For example, Why can't you hear the Pterodactyl using the john? ...you know, restroom?"

Silence as the grinning teen is about to deliver the punchline.

"Because the 'P' is _silent!_ Eh? Eh?" The three adults deadpan at Cyrus while most of the audience breaks out in a range of laughter.

_Seriously, Mister Fergusson_, the Huntress continues without waivering, _without an ability to so much as manipulate your aura, you could be disqualified from the tournament this very instant._

"You don't say. I don't recall taking a gander at any of that tosh, to be honest..." the cryptic replies with furrowed brows, "not a trick I recall needing while snookerin' those grotty Grimm back at Landfall, either, luv."

At that cheeky remark, the Headmaster nods at his partner who is too busy trying to hide a scowl as she hands him the mic so he can take over from there.

_What we're trying to ask is, what motivates you to take on this challenge, _the Headmaster continues cooly_, A Hunter's life is not for everyone. _

"Already said it, Cap'n Headmaster," the student replies with an equal air of ease, "You Hunters head off to save the world all giddy kipper and wotnot and I do wot I know, I tinker. But when threats are imminent I have to protect the things I can't live without. My chummy ol' chaps I call friends. And my tech."

The three adults trade glances before the nonchalant teen concludes.

"And yeh, also 'cause I'm mad as a bag of ferrets."

_Very well, _Ozpin finally concedes_, a strong will is as strong as any aura and a remarkable mind as any Semblance. You are allowed to compete in light of your previous service and skillset demonstrated at Landfall Ruins._

"And here I was thinkin' that was why you lot let me in this blasted arena in the first place! Rather chuffed about it all, if ya ask me..."

Ironwood now takes the mic from Ozpin, eyes narrowed at the unassuming teen who his colleagues have implied has a "skillset".

_Out of curiosity, how exactly do you plan on engaging a horde of Grimm with just a briefcase?_

"Ah, no reason to fret, dear codger!" Cyrus states with a grin and wink as he reaches for the briefcase and lays it on the floor, "I'd bet an Archer you've never seen _this_ before... though frankly I did steal the idea from a film I watched once. A tad argy-bargy for my taste, but the tech was top-mark."

And with a small click of the locks on either end, he then lays open the case and places both fists into the intricate inner workings on one of its open sides.

_Ching Ching! Clack Clack Clack Clack Clack..._

To everyone's wonder, metallic segments now mecha-shift onto his arms, covering his upper limbs and torso with shimmering plates as he then steps onto the other side of the open briefcase where the same process then begins on his feet.

Another few seconds pass as the elaborate feat of mechanical engineering completes around the cryptic to reveal a miniaturized Paladin, the bulky limbs sleeker and more fitting for this suit-like form as the metal faceplate slams shut in front of the cryptic's smug grin.

"_And I present to youuu, Iron Cipher!_" The teen exclaims with his arms out to bask in the applause of impressed onlookers as he continues with his electronically projected voice, "_each metallic plate was prepared using a cack-handed mix of steel and vibranium to create none other than the strongest, most canny form of metal known in Remnant-_"

"Adamantium..." The General finishes behind the mic with incredulity etched in his features, "but how?"

"_Trade secret, mate!_" Cyrus states with an exaggerated point at Ironwood despite the fact that the General wasn't using the mic, "_And yes, Adamantium! So bring on the beasties!_"

"If you wish," the Headmaster concludes as the three adults now walk off the stage to take their seats on the stands above.

_Beep._

Finalizing its brief diagnostic run, every piece of Cyrus' sturdy suit spins and locks into place as the HUD comes up within his helmet and he checks his transmitter.

"That wasn't so wonky, was it dearie?" He asks inside his helmet as the doors around him in the arena begin to open, "And to think ya were gettin' the collywobbles 'cause this was only the second time I use the briefcase method!"

'_It practically broke your leg the first time you tried it._' a feminine voice curtly responds in the small space.

"Just a sprain, nothin' ta get miffed about!" growls now begin emanating from the doors, "How are the weapons systems lookin', luv? I might need 'em _real_ soon..."

'_Conventional weapons at 100%, repulsor systems still charging up_.'

"Right-o, checking ammo/energy status windows..."

The holographic projections promptly pop up on either side of his peripherals:

** AMM - EN**

**[|] - [|]  
****[|] - [|]  
****[|] - [|]  
****[|] - [|]  
****[|] - [|]  
****[|] - [|]**

"Mhm. Marvelous." The cryptic quips as red eyes appear just behind the entryways.

'_Lastly, energy signal levels at 100% and holding!_' the young woman on the other line pauses before continuing cautiously, '_Cy, you may be facing dozens of these things on your own... you sure the suit can handle it?_'

Cyrus scoffs as he deadpans at the HUD avatar of his girlfriend, "Gabriel Arc. 'Ow many times I gotta tell ya about the signal? I feel like all this chin-waggin' is for naught when you ask me things like that!"

'_Yes, I know..._' She begins gruffly, she's heard his favorite saying a million times... '_You can't stop the signal._'

_RAWWWR!_

The iron cryptic grins as a four-barreled machine gun mecha-shifts onto his metallic arm aimed at the first Grimm's advancing position.

"You can _never_ stop the signal."

_RA-TA-TA-TA-TA-TA-TA-TA-!_

A hail of bullets pepper the first pack of oncoming Grimm as they charge the young man in the adamantium suit, his other arm sprouting its twin weapon as it mows down a dozen Beowulves coming in from his other side.

Up on the rafters above, Jaune leans slightly towards Seul who silently watches the match unfurl with wry amusement.

"All this time living in Flynn's Arcade together and you never thought he'd be working on something like that?"

Keeping his gaze on the fight, the boy responds shortly, "Theatricality and deception. That's his thing. Never saw it coming... Which I'll admit still kinda irks me."

Jaune then sits back and turns to his red-haired Spartan as she lovingly wraps her arms around his while she watches another wave of Grimm cut down by the relentless gunfire.

"Now that I think about it, this guy has the profile of just about every non-power comic book superhero I know..."

"Mmm, let's see..." Pyrrha begins as two dozen more Beowulves charge into even more barrages of bullets, "Is he an orphan?"

"Yep."

"Eccentric engineering genius?"

"Clearly."

"And he is obviously rich."

"Duh."

"Then all that's left is a grappling hook or a batclaw to swing around with and he's all set," she concludes stoically, reminding the white knight of another reason why he loves the bronze beauty who he had learned loved reading comics as much as he.

"Pyrrha, you're incredi-"

"Wait, spoke too soon," she speaks up again suddenly, prompting the confused blonde knight to return his gaze to the arena, "he has a grapple gun."

_TWAK!_

In the arena, the Iron Cipher shoots out its secondary grappling weapon from under the cuff of its right hand at the first of six two-legged Creeps charging him to whip its head down to the floor, forcing it to screech to a halt as the cryptic then rocket-propels himself up and over its hide and then riddles its back with bullets before completing his airborne arc. Landing on the other side of the now-dissolving creature, he calls up his transmitter from within.

"How we lookin' on ammo, luv?"

'_See for yourself..._'

"Status window."

**AMM - EN**

[ ] **\- [|]**  
[ ]** \- [|]  
**[ ]** \- [|]  
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"That's not good."

'_You may have to get creative with the last five Creeps._'

"Oh, fiddlesticks!" The cryptic replies nonchalantly, "these bloody wankers are two legs and all mouth, how bad can they possibly-"

_TWAK! TWAK! TWAK!_

Three long forked tongues suddenly whip out at the cryptic, pulling and holding both legs and an arm in place. He tries to arm his free limb before the fourth one can react.

"I got it!"

_TWAK!_

"Bollocks!"

'_Cy, their saliva is highly acidic, it's beginning to seep into the suit joints!_' the worried Arc warns as the remaining Creep begins to ram the immobilized Iron Cipher.

"I need 10,000 joules per second to power the repulsor beams," Cyrus now asks apprehensively as the red alarm lights within his helmet begin blinking with the strain on the suit, "_where are we with that!_"

'_It's over 9,000!_'

"Sod it! Good enough!"

And with two segmented appendages flexing up and over each shoulder, the spines of each now charge up with energy as they aim to the Creep about to ram the suit again and unleash a lethal beam blast.

_eeeee-POW!_

"Gotcha, ya lil' bugger!"

Each weapon now aiming at either side, the remaining four Creeps are promptly dispatched as well with short charges and subsequent discharges of both repulsor beams.

_eee-POWPOW!_

_eee-POWPOW!_

Shaking off the excess Creeper goo on him, he runs a quick diagnostic on suit integrity as Gabriel does the same from her distant control room.

'_Not too bad, nanites are already repairing damaged joints... not everything on that suit can be made of adamantium_.'

"Right as rain," Cyrus replies before pausing pensively, "you know, I gotta wonder, how's anyone get so many Grimm for all these Tourney rounds, hmm? Roundin' 'em up and wotnot to bring 'em here? Must be cheap as chips if it's that easy..."

'_Well, they must be doing something we didn't think of before. And besides, that Ironwood character is a General_.'

"True, he must have himself a crap-ton of recources, but-"

_BLAAAAARGH!_

'_What on Remnant-!?_'

Cyrus turns around to see the final opponent looming over him with dripping fangs: the larger version of the Creeps with beefy forearms and an equally dangerous mouth... A meat-eating dino-bull Grimm known as Dreadnought.

"Oooh, we've upset the mum."

_CRASH!_

And with a deceptively fast swing of its forearm, the dino-Grimm smashes the Iron Cipher into an arena wall. He falls on all fours as the large beast prepares to ram him into oblivion.

'_Energy levels are at 69%!_'

"Hah," the cryptic retorts weakly as he struggles to get up, "that's like a sex thing..."

'_CY, FOCUS!_'

Just as the beast charges to his location, he now swiftly dodges the deadly attack around its head with a rocket-powered maneuver and stays airborne behind it as it checks for its victim underneath itself.

"It's faster than it looks. No way we're stayin' on the ground against that thing anymore," Cyrus states with renewed determination, "Gabriel, find me a soft spot."

'_On it._'

And switching his voice to projection mode, he then gets the Grimm's attention the best way he knows how.

"_'Ey, beastie! Why so aggro?_"

_RA-TA-TA-TA-TA-TA-TA-!_

Cipher launches a full assault on the beast that turns to face him, emptying dozens of rounds and repulsor blasts into its exoskeleton as it aimlessly attempts to swat at him over its head. The Grimm is too heavy to jump and its arms are still too short to reach over its head where the young man in the iron suit hovers around.

_RA-TA-TA-TA-TA-Click-Click!_

"Cripes! Out of ammo! Find anything, yet, luv?"

The repulsor blasts continue along the beast's sides as Gabriel finally answers.

'_Cy, you'll lose power before you can penetrate that shell._'

"Wait..." The cryptic suddenly recalls, "Don't I still have six tank missiles?"

'_Yes, but they wont do much eith-_'

"Have you ever heard of the tale of Jonah?" Cyrus interrupts with a grin. There's a slight pause before his girlfriend answers slowly.

'_I WOULDN'T consider him a role model..._'

_BLAAAAARGH!_

Ignoring any further protest, Cyrus puts the spectators that were already on the edges of their seats on their feet as he unexpectedly flies _into_ the roaring leviathan, six muffled blasts going off inside the beast before a brief moment of tense silence.

_BOOOM!_

The resulting combined blast literally blows the beast into a million pieces, the spent iron suit finally seen careening through the air and landing in front of the platform face-first as the cryptic inside regains consciouness.

"Uuugh. Gabriel, make me a note. Remind me never to wake up in the morning. Ever again."

As he slowly gets up, Ozpin now appears on the platform in front of him and takes the mic.

_Match victory goes to Cyrus Fergusson! Congratulations! _He then walks away from the retracting mic and turns his attention to the cryptic one more time, "You proved us wrong, Mister Fergusson. You are indeed worthy of a Hunter's life. I hope this tournament is not the last we see of you."

Cyrus salutes him weakly as the Headmaster leaves and his Dorme allies and teams JNPR and RWBY quickly make their way over onto the arena. Jaune is the first to speak.

"Cipher, you okay? It looked like you really got knocked around by the Dreadnought!"

"_Meh,_" the tired cryptic begins with his electronic voice before his facemask comes up to reveal his ever-present smug expression, "it's better than a kick to the teeth with a dirty boot."

* * *

A few minutes later, the group of students meet with Sun, Neptune and Velvet outside the arena to continue checking Cipher's condition.

"Dang, dude. That dino-Grimm jacked you up." Sun states as he sees the scratches and scorch marks around the silvery suit.

"It's... actually not that bad. Look," Blake observes as she wipes away what looks like a scratch on the armor but merely turns out to be residue, all marks wiping away cleanly to reveal the titanium-like metal completely unharmed.

"It must take a great amount of energy to keep that suit together..." Pyrrha adds as well before Cyrus tries to wave off the attention his suit is receiving from his curious friends at every angle.

"Indeed it does. Excellent observation, Full Metal Huntress." Despite the chiding glare at the mention of her widely-known moniker, he continues, "It's energy I couldn't even bloody harness until Jaune and Davin came along. The control room back at Dorme is still runnin' off their auras, gave me enough power to finish this baby right 'ere, too."

"But how'd the suit take all that damage?" Ruby now asks in curiosity, "You got hit pretty hard and they didn't even make a dent!"

'_Well, Ruby,_' Jaune's sister's voice suddenly blares out through the suit, '_you can thank its vibranium components for that nifty feature!_'

"Nifty pifty!" Cipher adds with a grin as Gabriel continues.

'_It absorbs excess kinetic energy without compromising its structure._'

"In short, you smelt it with steel and it becomes Adamantium, the strongest metal known on Remnant. Rare stuff, that."

"Then to be honest," Ren interjects with a casual glance at the impressive feat of engineering, "that 'stuff' could get you a ticket into Beacon, aura-capable or not."

"Maybe. Still rollin' that one around in the ol' noggin... I might say yes if it comes to that."

The heiress suddenly cuts in with her usual icy demeanor and arms crossed as she begins, "Though you're still entirely vulnerable without the suit. The Grimm would make mincemeat of you should they ever attack you while you're unprepared."

Yang lightly facepalms at her teammate's predictable reaction.

"Don't worry, Mr. Universe, she just gets like that when she's jealous."

"I do _not!_" The Schnee retorts hotly.

"Do too!~"

"Do not!"

"Do _too._~" she then giggles fiedishly before pushing another one of Weiss' obvious buttons with another favorite comment, "U mad, bro?"

"GRR..." The fuming snowy-haired girl is then pushed away from the grinning brawler by her little sister who has learned enough about her difficult partner to know exactly how to diffuse the situation.

"C'mon, Weiss, repeat after me! Goosfraba."

"But-But!"

"Goosfraba!"

"Alright! Goosfraba!"

"That's good. Slower."

"...Goos...fraba..." And to everyone's surprise, the strange peace word actually helps the heiress calm down as the rouge leader is still holding her back as a precautionary measure. Ruby grins at her adorably relaxed partner as she finally takes a deep breath.

"How do you feel?"

"Better."

"Good!" Ruby adds with her usual mirth, "Remember, Weiss, temper's the only thing you _can't_ get rid of by losing it!"

"Mmm very well," she finally concedes lightly.

"Wow, it's a good thing you know your partner, Ruby!" Velvet exclaims in relief before continuing sheepishly, "It looked like things could've escalated quickly... someone could've gotten in trouble."

"Meh. It's better than a poke in the eye with a blunt stick." Cipher replies casually.

For the sake of the delicate Schnee, a few students try to stifle their chuckles but Seul now throws his arms up in frustration while turning away from his roommate.

"Ugh! You and your British sayings!"

"Ah, don't get so arsed about it, ol' chap! We're roomies, you'll deal with it! Besides, my sayings are the best thing since sliced bread!"

"Aaagh..."

"Heh, I guess Yang isn't the only one who knows how to annoy her teammate," Neptune adds with a smirk.

"Not to worry, Goggles!" Cipher concludes with a finger in the air and a resolute smile on his features, "It's always better than a slap to the face with a wet fish!"

"_That's it. _I'm gonna kill 'im." the boy turns back with Hansel unsheathed as the cackling Brit flies back towards their seats.

"I get a feeling you'll have all of four more years to do that," Ren adds lightly before frowning at his own partner who seems to be deep in thought, "Is... everything okay, Nora?"

"...Yeahhh," she finally responds slowly, "I'm still trying to figure out if that British guy's briefcase can make pancakes..."

And Ren, the perfect example of a patient and caring partner, simply smiles and shakes his head at his lovable companion.

"No, Nora. It cannot."

* * *

**A/N: Woot! And here's a chapter chock-full of references that I hope you guys enjoy! Every superhero team has to have a guy without superpowers, right? Right? Well why should it be any different with RWBY! Muahahaaaa :)**

**Anyways, thank you all so much again for your OC submissions, you guys are _AWESOME_, dear readers! I can now confirm that I'll be accepting a total of _4_ more OCs in addition to the two that I've already chosen that will be introduced in this Volume and a third in Volume 3. As previously noted, I'm looking for characters that have depth, that aren't _too_ overpowered, and that jive well with the story. And like acting in real life, you never know unless you submit your application and get the call-back from the writers! ;) I'm still accepting submissions, so have at it! Be detailed, be original, and have fun with it! :)**

**Now for some thank-you notes! :D**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! And I love a story with a healthy amount of references, and I like to include a few with the OCs in TVW as well. I'll do my best with upcoming chapters :)**

***Tommy2486: Thank you! And yeah, it was a pretty big hint hah!**

***ImSoAwesome: Thank you! And he does, but I have to give a big shoutout to Enerjack's 'Sun Ragekong' fic which is pure hilarity! Seriously, give it a read, people! It's awesome!**

***Lazercorn51104: Thank you! And I love me some puns, and Dodgeball. Haha.**

***SpanishBulldog63: Thank you! A very nice submission, and a very interesting weapon! I'll be sure to let you know more as Volume 2 goes on :)**

**So now to address the time gaps between chapters. I mean, it's not too much, maybe like 2-4 days between chapters, but it's because I'm working on the final arcs for Volume 3... and indeed, how TVW will end! But to be totally honest, I've been working quite a bit on Yang's chapter in Volume 2 (which a few of you have correctly deduced is coming soon)... And I can finally say a few things are DEFINITELY going to happen. I don't wanna spoil the surprise, though... It's kinda like a mid-season finale kind of thing, hehe ;)**

**In any case, take care and stay tuned!**

**And Happy Reading!**


	56. Vol 2-11: The Crimsonette

_**The Trials, Pt XI**_

_"Prepare for your greatest moments  
__Prepare for your finest hour  
__The dream that you've always dreamed is  
__Suddenly about to flower"_

* * *

The tournament during the second day was proceeding as well as could be expected; some students advancing, most students falling short. It was thanks to General Ironwood's recent assumption of power as head of security that he had gained enough leverage to influence the event, changing the rules for the first round: entrants would be facing packs of Grimm as a qualifier to enter the tournament itself.

And after many matches that only Ruby seemed to have been paying attention to out of enthusiasm, watching a student from Atlas nearly beat Jaune's time with how quickly he eliminated his opponents and a set of twins go in back to back rounds, each one decimating their respective packs, it was finally her turn.

_Name, Ruby Rose..._

_Affiliation, Beacon..._

_Weapon, Crescent Rose..._

_Semblance, Speed..._

The echo from Ozpin's voice on the loudspeakers dies down inside the amphitheater as he looks down from the platform at the red-hooded girl standing in the arena below him and his colleagues nefore continuing.

_Are you ready to commence your trial, Miss Rose?_

"Yes, sir." She replies, slightly nervous.

_Very well, let's begin._

As the three adults make their way up to their seats in the spectator area above the arena, James leans slightly over to Glynda.

"Isn't that the girl from the CCT incident?"

The Huntress nods discreetly.

"Ah. This should be an interesting match, as far as I know she has demonstrated all the qualities a Huntress is about. She's recognized threats. Taken action. And done the best she could."

"As I'm sure she'll continue to demonstrate throughout the tournament," Ozpin adds flatly from Glynda's other side.

"Of course," James replies lightly as they now take their seats, "but this one will be special."

_Beep_.

At the sound of the first signal, even Ruby is surprised by not just the sheer speed with which she is suddenly surrounded by ravenous Beowulves, but by their numbers as well. She hasn't even gotten to take out her weapon yet before the first three wolves charge in.

"That has to be at least five dozen Grimm!" The Huntress seated above exclaims in surprise before turning and narrowing her eyes at the General, "James, did you do this?"

"It's a test I'm sure she can pass," he replies without turning to look at her as he props his chin on a fist while watching her first move intently.

Quickly converging on her position, however, the wolves only slash a small cloud of rose petals.

Looking up, they finally spot Ruby above them outlined by the arena lights and her cape swirling around her body. Softly humming to the tune of Red Like Roses in mid-air, she then reaches behind herself and pulls out a rifle, firing a shot that blows a large part of a Beowolf's head out in a burst of black smoke.

_BLAM!_

More Beowolves start to attack as Ruby lands. With practiced ease, she leaps over the first beast and shoots it in the back, and still in the air blasts another one's side out with the large caliber rounds and gets into a position where she can fire at the third one dead center. Rolling back from the humongous pack with the momentum from the recoil, she stands and takes the opportunity to unfold Crescent Rose into its larger - and deadlier - scythe form.

_RAWWWR!_

One of the braver Beowulves goes forward, but Ruby merely spins and hooks its body in the curve of her blade, giving it just enough time to slowly rear its head up at her face and bare its bloodthirsty fangs with a murderous growl. But despite the proximity to certain death... Ruby smiles.

Up on the stands, Yang pulls in Blake unexpectedly for a side hug in her excitement, knowing full well what that means.

"Hah! Did you see her face, Blakey? Did you see it?!" She exclaims as her partner reacts like a cat being startled by an unexpected touch, "That means she's got this in the bag!"

_BLAM!_

And with a single shot, the red-hooded girl fires the sniper section at speeds that sever the creature's body in a puff of black smoke with its recoil, both disintegrating halves promptly landing on the ground before the rest of the pack charges. Unloading the spent bullet, she rotates her scythe and slams the blade into the ground like a monopod to brace it from its own recoil, firing several rounds at the approaching wolf-like creatures of Grimm that charge her furiously.

A Beowolf almost gets her with its claws, but she leaps out of the way and fires at the monster in midair front of her, the power from the shot sending the dead Grimm flying and the crimsonette back through the air using the tip of the scythe blade to slow her retreat and land on its handle. She then takes a brief moment to silently lay out her gameplan as the remaining several dozen Beowulves close in to attack.

"But there are so many..."

The first one pounces on her with outstretched claws which she easily dodges with a pommelhorse-like spin on Crescent Rose's handle which is still suspended with the blade in the ground, then catching the trigger and dispatching a second Beowulf at her side which sends her rapidly spinning backwards with her blade to kick down the first one into submission.

But refusing to go down without a fight, it comes back up behind Ruby as she engages a third Beowulf but doesn't stand a chance as she rapidly twirls the deadly blade with a barrage of bullets that leave both attackers in pieces on either side before catching yet another one by the neck with the nook of her weapon and swiftly beheading it with the recoil of another discharged round.

"Incredible..." The General muses from above.

Yet without any reprieve, two more rush her before Ruby wraps her scythe around the closest one and fires, cleaving the former in half while the one farther away gets hit by Crescent's round. Ruby then evades the claw attacks of another Grimm duo before separating them and cutting the arms off the first before killing it, much to Yang's apparent amusement in the stands above.

"Hehe, I guess she really dis-_armed_ it, huh guys? Get it?" The brawler asks with a grin before her mouth is quickly covered by a hand from both Blake and Weiss on either side of her as the two teammates watch their leader in awe.

"_Whoa_." All three now state in unison as Ruby wraps the blade around the second and flips herself on its back before beheading it with the recoil of another sniper round that sends her soaring through the air.

The carnage doesn't dissuade three more Beowulves from trying their luck as they each leap up to the cool-headed leader in the air but meet their demise when with a nimble set of twirls from her weapon, Ruby fires three rounds that each find their cranial targets. But as soon as she lands, a fourth Beowulf lands a solid strike on her, sending her skidding back to a side of the arena.

"There are still almost three dozen of those things coming at her," Blake observes with worry.

"But has she used her Cross Clips yet?" Weiss suddenly asks, eliciting a brief glance from her teammates upon nearing a tinge of... confidence? in her voice. Confident about Ruby?

"No. I think," Yang replies slowly.

The heiress grins fiendishly in anticipation. Despite it all, she knows her leader well enough to see the formidable threat she's become in battle. Especially with her augmented sniper rounds.

"Then Monty help them all."

Ruby then stands straight, observes the Beowulf armada, and ejects Crescent Rose's magazine before flipping Crescent's orientation and loading a single magazine marked with a four-arrow crosshair decal on its side. Discharging her powerfully augmented weapon, the new magazine amplifies her recoil and causes her to fly forward at insanely fast speeds through the horde of Grimm. She swiftly kills two more Beowolves while the others look on in shock - just in time for Ruby to reach the large pack.

_SLASH SLASH POW CRACK SLASH POW POW...!_

The crimsonette swiftly enters and utilizes Crescent Rose to its entirety to destroy all of the Beowulves with multiple shots, strikes, stabs and slices. As limbs and bullet casings fly, Ruby finishes the final Beowulf before firing one last round from Crescent which causes a massive explosion as she flips into the air and lands flawlessly before standing with her weapon behind her while spent casings fall down around the arena grounds.

Breathtaken, the entire audience stands with thunderous applause as Blake turns to Weiss with narrowed eyes.

"How did you know?"

The heiress returns a smug smirk as she replies, "Cuz we talk. And you can see why I have full confidence in her ability as a fighter!"

The catgirl and brawler each glare at her.

"What! Is it so difficult to fathom that Ruby and I _actually_ get along now!?" she states innocently. But Blake knows better. _Mock_ innocence.

"Weiss..."

"Aaand..." She now contines nervously, her facade shattered under the pressure of Belladonna's gaze, "I made a... _sizeable_... wager against Neptune that she would win. I had to be certain, so I spent time coaching her on her technique and learned about her Cross Clips."

Yang facepalms loudly while Blake merely nods her head in amused understanding.

"This I believe."

"What did you bet against Neptune?" Yang asks, restraining her temper knowing the billionaire heiress' gambling addiction was difficult to quell especially in a tournament. But restraint becomes much harder as the snowy-haired girl stubbornly crosses her arms and turns away from them with a huff.

"I'm not going to talk about it."

The brawler already feels her irises turn red as she's about to get an answer by force before the applause all around them dies down suddenly when a loud booming is heard in the arena.

Massive.

Ground-shaking.

Footsteps.

_ROOOAAARRRR!_

The startled crimsonette turns to see one of the biggest Ursae she's ever seen standing on its two hind legs, the hulk of black fur and spikes nearly reaching the height of the spectator decks.

"Y-You brought an Ursae Rex into the amphitheatre!?" Glynda cries out at the General, losing her cool in a rare moment of surprise.

"Relax, Glynda. Every safety precaution is set in place. No need to worry."

"Worry!? This has gone past worrying, James! You're turning this into a coliseum!" She hisses at the General, "Our students are _not_ gladiators! Not to mention the questions this raises as to how you managed to capture Grimm this size in the first place!"

"The Grimm in Atlas have a high average age, and thus, size. You know that. And in either case, I have full authority to do as I wish in this tournament."

Glynda glances over to the Headmaster.

"It is true," he states sullenly, "The Council of Vale has spoken."

"Besides, we need Hunters and Huntresses that can asses the situation and take action no matter how grave the opposition." The General continues. At this point, Glynda looks like she's literally about to lash out at the Atlesian leader but is held back by Ozpin who proceeds to placate her.

"It's a reality they will have to face one way or the other, Glynda. One that these last four girls competing today have clearly shown to have handled admirably enough during The Valean War."

The disciplinarian sinks back in her seat with arms tightly crossed.

"Very well."

Back in the arena, Ruby is now desperately trying to evade the giant beast's deceptively fast attacks, its large bony arms laden with spikes proving a deadly force against any opponent, aura-sensitive or not. She lands to the side of the beast and continues firing at it, but like a Deathstalker, its tough hide and bony plates prove nearly impenetrable by conventional blades and bullets. Up in the stands, even Neptune leans over to Sun with worry.

"Hey dude, you know that old video game series with the bounty hunter that hunts down space pirates, the ones where she has to fight those bosses that cover like 52% of the entire screen like Mother Brain, Ridley and Kraid?"

"Uh huh." The monkey-faunus nods blankly as he watches the giant Grimm in front of them.

"This is a lot like that."

Sun slowly turns to Neptune, eyes wide in realization, "Duuuuude..."

"I know, and to this day I've never beat that game..."

Next to them, Velvet merely pouts adorably with disbelief, rolling her eyes as she thinks to herself, 'Pfft, I beat that game three times over on Hard mode.'

Meanwhile, while dodging paws and jaws in the arena, Ruby is still having trouble finding a soft spot on it and knows that her ammo won't last forever when suddenly to everyone's horror-

_CRACK!_

A paw-swipe connects with its target by pure chance and sends Ruby hurdling into the far arena wall. The blow itself would've killed anyone, including her, but the attack force wasn't head on and Crescent Rose took the brunt of the impact. With a victorious roar, it seems to focus on the young girl as she struggles to stand, intent on tearing its prey to shreds as it makes its way to her.

Coming down on all fours, it closes in when it hears her say something.

"You big meanie..."

_BLAM!_

And now her own deceptively fast semblance kicks in to the audience's relief, having faked the severity of her injury, and she speeds around the large Ursa which has just been blinded in its left eye.

"Ugh, but how am I gonna take this thing down!" She thinks aloud as the large beast rears itself up on its hind legs roaring in pain and checks her scroll to see that her aura is deep in the yellow, "It doesn't even have any weaknesses I can use to win with!"

But then an answer comes to her from the most unusual of places. A lone boy in the stands on a distant side of the amphitheater jumping up and down desperately trying to get her attention as he points to his underarms.

Seul.

"Armpits?" Ruby asks curiously, slightly cocking her head to the side.

_ROOOAAARRR!_

Just then the giant monster, having finally found its target, lifts its massive arms in the air to bring both paws down in a powerful fist-strike at the crimsonette's position. But then she sees it. A patch of vulnerable space at its armpits between its armor-like bony plating.

"That's it!"

Dodging the heavy blow to the ground, Ruby uses the terranean shockwave to launch her weakened frame in the air over the beast's left shoulder and firmly plant the blade tip deep into the exposed joint. Holding on for dear life as the beast jerks itself up in pain, she readies her plan as the massive Grimm reaches full height.

"Here we GOOOOO...!"

And with the blade tip still in the beast's joint, Ruby literally runs around its armpit and shoulder in a complete circle, the mere girth of the massive limb large enough to fit two Rubys inside of as she runs the circumference of said joint dragging Crescent Rose behind her. And with pained roars, the Ursa Rex tries to reach for the red ring of blurring rose petals on its left shoulder but cant since it's blinded on that side and is limited to flailing around aimlessly until the whole arm finally comes off at the socket.

Not done yet, Ruby flips in the air and stabs the inside of the shoulder blade to hold her weapon in place as she aims the barrel of her rifle into the beast's exposed wound.

_BLAM BLAM BLAM BLAM BLAM BLAM...!_

The crimsonette unloads round after round of her augmented Cross Clip into the Ursa's torso until finally, _finally_, a high caliber bullet hits home and the Ursa Rex twitches to a standstill before falling to the ground in its last moments.

She then hops off on time before it lands with an earth-shaking thud, exhausted and landing awkwardly herself in front of the platform as the General comes out to make the announcement.

_An incredible display of Huntsmanship, wouldn't you say? Wouldn't you say?_ He exclaims loudly as the entire arena roars in approval with thunderous applause, _One can literally COUNT the Hunters in history on two hands that have taken on the legendary Ursa Rex single-handedly and won, and today I announce with full weight of the terms that the match goes to Ruby Rose!_

General Ironwood then looks down at the red leader and smiles, "Excellent work, young lady. I knew you had it in you."

* * *

"That was _totally_ uncalled for!" Yang roars in a wave of heat as the group of students now meet outside the arena.

"I've taken down that number of Beowulves before," the crimsonette states matter-of-factly.

"You _have?_~" Nora asks with awe.

"Don't encourage her!" the brawler continues in her anger, "I'm talking about that giant Ursa!"

"It's not something I couldn't handle!" Ruby quips in reply, "Jaune could do it, Vin could do it, and so could I!"

Yang pauses for a moment mid-rage at the mention of Davin but then narrows her eyes at her sister, "Yeah, but they did it _together_, and it was to survive, not for sport! But this... they had _no right_ to throw that at you!"

"Yes," Pyrrha now cuts in, placing a hand on the fuming brawler's shoulder, "you are right. But this was to survive as well, if you think about it, and Ruby did. What's important is that she's alright."

Yang does her best to calm herself before replying, "..._Fine_, but now I need to blow off some steam..."

She then begins to walk away, soon followed by Blake who turns back to the group before continuing after Yang around a nearby corner, "I'll go with her to make sure she doesn't do anything too reckless."

"I need to go break something big!" Yang screams from behind the corner, apparently hearing Blake despite the distance between the two, "Cardin, where are you!"

"Cardin's nice now, Yang..." Jaune calls out flatly, to which she pokes her head back around the corner, eyes narrowed at the fellow blonde.

"Can we just pretend he _isn't_ for a few minutes. C'mon, just _humor me_, Delsin Rowe."

The white knight throws his arms up at the terrible video game reference to his semblance as next to him, Ren silently holds the bridge of his nose to stifle his laughter.

"That was awesome..."

"Says the son of Lie Bruce."

"...touché."

But still, Jaune can understand Yang's feelings. His life with seven overprotective sisters being more than enough testament to the fact, he then calls to mind those the brawler has lost... a mother, a step-mother, and the young man she had fallen for badly. Losing Ruby could possibly be her breaking point. He takes a deep breath before speaking up.

"C'mon, guys. We should probably go stay with them for a bit before the next contestant is called. Only three more rounds left in qualifiers today."

The the rest of teams RWBY, JNPR, VNDS and the Dorme warriors follow along, but before the rest of the group can turn the corner, Ruby pulls back Seul by the arm as the rest go ahead.

"WAH-!"

"Shh!" She hushes him sternly with a finger to her lips, letting him straighten himself out after clearly understanding the message that she wanted to tell him something.

"Ruby? What happened?"

"Umm..." She begins nervously, realizing that she actually hasn't had a one-on-one conversation with a boy her age since before Landfall Ruins and trying to psych herself up mentally, 'Oh come on, Ruby! Just do it, say thank you and don't screw it up! Ohhh...'

His waiting gaze isn't helping much either. 'Gah, why does he have to be so much like Blake! Well here goes...'

"Um, uh, thank you," she finally ekes out, her eyes now glued to the floor between them, "Thank you for helping me out there..."

The boy who's probably a little less than a year older than her merely gazes at her for a moment before simply responding, "You're welcome." And turns to leave.

'Wait, no!' Before she realizes, for some impulsive reason her arm shoots out and lightly grabs him by the shoulder, startling him again and prompting him to turn back at her with a confused expression. 'Ugh_, now _you did it, you klutz! Um... Uh...'

"...Why?"

"Huh?"

The socially inexperienced girl clears her throat before beginning again, "Why'd you help me?"

"Why not?" This guy was _not_ making it any easier to hold a conversation.

"Well, plenty of reasons..." She continues, still a tad flushed with the situation she's in but gaining more control by the second, "Why help someone when you're used to doing things on your own? Or to give yourself an edge in the competition, or to watch how _not_ to kill an Ursa Rex? Not that you'd think that, but you know..."

He finally relaxes a bit before answering, "For the record, I never said I liked to be 'alone', though I do. I _said_ I didn't see the point in joining Beacon, which I still don't", but to her surprise, he actually lets out a small smile before continuing, "yet, as I recall, you convinced me to reconsider that the last time we spoke... which is why I'm here."

"And?" She asks with a tinge of hope of having a new friend join such a worthy cause.

"Still on the fence about it." He replies flatly before unexpectedly patting her shoulder, "cuz to be honest, I don't think you guys would want me here once you get to know me."

He couldn't help cracking a tiny smile as he watched just how quick her expression went from curious to adorably incredulous.

"Whaaaaat! What're you talking about, you afraid of your past or something?"

He nods solemnly but once again is unable to hold back a smirk at her unexpectedly light-hearted reaction to this very serious news.

"Yeahhhhh, been there, done that. Half the people _in_ this place have a 'past'!"

"Though I doubt they're like mine."

"Oh yeah?" The crimsonette retorts, her original nervousness long gone, "Try me!"

He simply shakes his head in silently amused determination.

"Oh, come on! I know people whose pasts are probably _way_ worse than yours! Like, terrorist groups worse!"

The small smile on his face fades before he replies with just one word, "Blake."

"_Yeah!_ ...Wait, how do you-" she suddenly furrows her brows, pointing at the expressionless boy, "You know her?"

He merely sighs before responding, "Once upon a time, in another life. She wouldn't remember me, though. But I hurt a lot of people, Ruby..."

It's _his_ eyes that are now glued to the ground, his entire countenance drifting into his dark cloud of thought before suddenly being brought back with two hands on his shoulders and a pair of silver eyes trying to peek into his dark green ones.

"But that's not the person I saw on the stands today, Seul. You didn't have to help me but you did," she begins softly, letting his gaze follow hers as she straightens up and stands back from him with a small smile of her own, "Care to explain?"

He catches himself staring at her shimmering grey eyes again before processing her question. 'Gah, but it just isn't fair! Her eyes are silver. Silver!' He mentally shakes off the impulse to keep staring and goes with what he does best.

"No. Goodbye, Ruby."

He turns to walk away from the red-hooded leader in front of him who promptly begins stomping after him in frustration.

"Ugggggh! And then you do _that_ thing! You bail when you feel like things get too personal! Whyyyyy?"

"Not gonna tell ya!" He declares loudly as he pauses to look for his peers but is jolted out of his task when an unaware Ruby walks right into his back, "Oof!"

"Ow! Sorry!" She cries out before he quickly turns around and checks if she's okay.

"Don't worry, you'll live." he states gruffly before leaving her behind once again to find the group.

"You left me _again!_" She shouts as she dashes to him in a cloud of rose petals to catch up, "You don't even know where you're going!"

"I'll find a way..." He replies, not even turning back to look at her to avoid looking at her eyes.

'Uuuugh,' she continues mentally in her own thought bubble as she follows him, 'He makes _no_ sense! Why does he have to be so stubborn! Why does he have to be so mysterious! Why do I even care! Wait...' Now her inner conversation becomes deeper as she comes to terms with a few things, 'Does me caring mean something!? What if I'm attracted to stubborn and mysterious? What if that's why I want to make sense of it!'

She chuckles to herself at the notion, 'NAHHH! You're talking _crazy_, Ruby. You're talking crazy talk! How would I even _know_ if I liked a guy, it's not like it's as obvious as hitting a-'

"Pole."

_DONNNG!_

Next thing she knows, she's on the ground looking up at a silhouette of a chuckling boy over her before he finally tries to pick her up. Standing up, she flicks off the remaining Nevermore birdies flying around her head before realizing what just happened with Yang-like fury at the boy.

"_Youuu_... you let me walk into that _pole!?_"

At that, the boy can't help it anymore. Bursting out in laughter, he staggers back with tears streaming down his cheeks before holding his arms out placatingly at the blushing girl with a huge grin on his face.

"I-I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! PfffftHAHA! I-I didn't think it was possible but I had to watch!"

She narrows her silvery eyes at the meanie and pouts adorably in her anger.

"You make. NO sense."

And finally recovering at the face of his companion's hurt expression and action of turning away from him to walk away, he quickly jogs up to her side and matches pace with her before wiping a final tear from his eye. He can't remember the last time someone made him smile this much.

"*_sigh_* Good! Does this mean you'll stop following me now like a lost puppy?"

Letting her mouth drop open as insult is literally added to injury, she turns to him and punches him in the shoulder. Not that it does much damage.

"_NO!_ You're _not_ going to get me not to like you _that_ easily, Mister Sinclair! Just _watch!_"

She stares at him. He stares at her. Things get intense.

Then they both burst out laughing again.

As their mirth finally begins to subside, they resume walking around the outer corridor of the arena side by side.

"_Fine_," Seul begins lightly, "I guess I'll just have to get used to having you around. Heck, to having people around in general."

The crimsonette replies with mock offense, "Hmpf. You got that right!"

He turns to her again to see if she's actually serious but only to nearly explode in another fit of chuckles when he does. Of course, she deadpans at this.

"What _now._"

"Pffft, t-the pole left a huge mark on your f-face! BAHAHAHA!"

"SEUL SINCLAIR!" She yells at him as he dashes away to the lift that takes them to their seats.

"I-I'll, _I'll beat you into a pulp!_"

Despite the threats, his laughing continues into the lift until he turns to see the flash of red rose petals coming at him behind lift doors that will definitely not close on time.

"Oh crap."

* * *

**A/N: Volume 2. The Volume between Volumes 1 and 3. But who says it can't have more story to it than an interesting tourney plot? Ehehehe :D I hope you guys like it, I'm terrible at fluff of any type but I try... practice makes perfect and all, you know :) Also, thanks to everyone who checked out that newest fic I wrote, RWBY: Switched! Not even 24 hours and it's already pushing 30 followers! WHAAAAT!? o.O**

**Anyways, now for some thank-you notes:**

***Tommy2486: Thank you! Comments like that really help me go on and enjoy what I do so much, so thank YOU for following TVW! ;)**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! And yes, yes I did. And yes, yes I do. :) (that wasn't a reference... I think).**

***RononDexSpecialist: Thank you! And once again, reviews like that are very appreciated, so my heart goes out to everyone who enjoys this fic as much as I've enjoyed writing it! :D**

***Lazercorn51104: Thank you! And you got plenty of time, man! No worries, and like I said, if you're willing to make an OC then I'm definitely willing to consider it! I remember when the idea of Davin first popped into my head... little seed grew up into, well, all of this! And not to mention my SI, Professor Dandelion ;) haha**

***OC Vaiden Talos: Hello! I just noticed you joined FFnet about an hour or so ago... so welcome! :) I'll take your review as an opportunity to tell everyone that my Volume 2 "mid-season finale" *_cough cough Yang's chapter_* is drawing very very close.**

**So stay tuned! Take care, peoples, and I will likely come out with chapter 2 of RWBY: Switched! either today or tomorrow. As you'll probably understand unless you haven't read it yet... the title for chapter 2 will be The Shining Beacon (original, right? haha).**

**Anyways, Happy Reading!**


	57. Vol 2-12: The Rising Heiress

_**The Trials, Pt XII**_

_"Mirror, tell me something,  
__Tell me who's the loneliest of all?"_

* * *

_Name, Weiss Schnee..._

_Affiliation, Beacon..._

_Weapon, Myrtenaster..._

_Semblance, Glyphs..._

The echo from General Ironwood's voice on the loudspeakers dies down inside the amphitheater as the Atlesian leader looks down from the platform at the snowy-haired heiress standing in the arena below him and his colleagues and continues.

_Are you ready to commence your trial, Miss Schnee? Also, your family sends their regards._

The rapier-wielder's courteous nod and smile belies her internal grimace within, her practiced response to any reference of her family that she had perfected over the years.

_Let's begin._

As the General along with Ozpin and Glynda who were standing beside him exit the platform and take their seats in the stands above, Weiss' smile turns genuine as she spots her team in the stands as well.

Yang repeatedly fistpumping the air with anticipation, Blake with her little 'RWBY' banner in hand waving in the air as she sits next to Sun, and Ruby giving her a two thumbs up with an adorably wide grin.

'Dunce,' Weiss mentally states as she watches Ruby now waving at her from the seats, but it's now more of a term of endearment that she and Ruby eventually came to terms with than anything else.

She represses a grin as she notices Blake and Sun try to calm the crimsonette before the signal goes off to start the match.

_Beep_.

And with a single sound, her entire will focuses on one thing. Her training. She turns to the opening doors around her to face her opponents.

Two dozen Beowulves.

"Hmpf. Hardly a contest," she mutters to herself confidently, "should've tried harder, Ironwood."

After all, it was _his_ idea to change the rules for entrants going into the first round of this year's Vytal Tournament with leverage of his new authority as head of security: a final qualifying round consisting of packs of Grimm as opponents. It was a test of true huntsmanship in the face of opponents that wouldn't hesitate to tear you apart.

_GRRR-RAWWWR!_

Three Beowulves charge forward, and with three nimble slashes of her rapier they fall before her in dissolving heaps. She turns her gaze to the rest of the pack that now charge as one with a small smile.

Bone crashes against metal as the heiress parries claw-attacks coming in at every direction, each slash countering several strikes at a time as she dodges or ducks under a few of the Grimm that try to pounce at her between attacks. Forced to the defensive by the sheer number of the beasts surrounding her, Weiss then continues to focus on blocking as her rapier begins to sprout red runes all over.

"I love it when she does this part!" Ruby quips excitedly from the stands in anticipation.

_BOOM! _

Stabbing Myrtenaster into the ground, Weiss unleashes a sizable fiery blast around her that blows most of the Beowulves back and gives her the room to go back on the offensive.

Her rapier trailing red flame, the icy heiress goes to work with her flaming sword, not wasting a single stroke as she flips and twirls around claw attacks and dispatches another dozen Grimm with another dozen elegantly executed attacks. Stab here, slash there, the remaining Beowulves get no chance to defend against the calculating Huntress-in-training and now litter the arena grounds along with their remaining pack as disintegrating corpses. However, no sooner has she straightened her combat skirt after decapitating the final Beowulf when she's blindsided by a powerful swipe from the Beowulves' larger counterpart: an older, smarter Alpha Beowulf with savagery to spare.

Without a word, as the heiress was known for her silence during a serious match, she follows her training and lunges at the beast with flaming blade but only to falter in surprise when the massive wolf-like Grimm dodges the deadly point with surprising speed and counters with a back-pawed smash against Weiss' side, who is barely able to block with blade and aura before being sent skidding across the arena.

She grimaces as the grotesque beast roars in pride several dozen yards from her, and quickly checking her aura levels and dust cartridges in an effort to gauge her options and form a plan, the usually fastidious swordswoman is caught by surprise as the most unexpected memory crosses her mind in the blink of an eye.

_"Hey Weiss, what was that song you were singing?" The crimsonette asked the heiress some time after the events of The Valean War as the snowy-haired girl stepped out of their dorm bathroom in her nightgown._

_"Oh, you could hear me? I wasn't aware." she began with her usual icy air, grateful that the low light of evening would cover her blush in the dimly-lit dorm and that her other teammates were away in a sparring session so they couldn't tease her about it, but at the same time not seeing the point of being so cold at the moment... so she decided to ditch it just this once. _

_"...It was an aria I used to sing when I was younger at recitals and such. My father composed it, I just added the words."_

_It was no secret that Weiss had the most beautiful voice her teammates had had the pleasure of listening to; but at Beacon, they only knew because the heiress had the habit of singing in the shower or whenever she thought she was alone. _

_Due to that, and the fact that anyone else who would know of this were still living in Atlas, only her team and Jaune knew of her incredible talent. He had spotted her alone next to the school fountain one night before trying another attempt at her affections - which were later shot down as customary - but had paused when he heard the most mesmerizing melodies echoing through the air like waves of powerful nostalgia that caressed his ears with every soft note and then nearly brought him to his knees in breathless sorrow, poignant riffs he would certainly never forget. But that was a long time ago._

_"It sounded really sad... and lonely..." Ruby began again back in their dorm, now in her pj's as well as the Schnee daughter went to ready her bed for sleep with a sigh and mumbled reply._

_"Story of my life."_

_Weiss turned off the lights and got in bed thinking the conversation had ended, until she suddenly felt her entire mattress bounce under the weight of the small girl who hopped onto it cross-legged at her feet._

_"I know growing up wasn't easy for you, Weiss," Ruby continued softly, a reassuring smile melting its way through the heiress' icy protest before it could even escape her lips, "but you have a REALLY nice voice! Makes me wonder why you didn't want to be a singer instead of a Huntress, music seems to come pretty easy to you!"_

_"Well both are rather similar, if you think about it," she retorted as she peeked her head over her blanket with a hint of finality, hoping that it'd be left at that._

_"...Mmm, I don't see how."_

_Drat._

_Somewhat miffed at the lack of imaginative acuity from her normally perceptive leader, Weiss sat up with a raised brow and mimicked her partner's position on her comforter, ready to lay down some knowledge as both girls now sat cross-legged across from each other on her bed._

_"Think about it, Ruby. Musically speaking, every brief encounter against an opponent as a Huntress is like a trill of movement, every fighting technique and finishing blow like their own musical progression and cadence, and every attack a well-placed note in the grand score that we call a battle. A successful score is based on superior note placement and polished progressions which harmonize well, as is the case with victory on the battlefield."_

_"Sooo..." Ruby started as she looked up at the room lit only by the shattered moonlight from outside, pouting pensively as the gears turned in her head._

_Her snowy-haired partner exhaled sharply, but more amused than anything else at watching her adorable partner struggle for comprehension._

_"Simbolically, fighting is a lot like music in the same way it can be perceived a dance in a literal sense."_

_"Hmm, okay," the crimsonette replied more confidently, now able to make more sense of the concept, "Professor Ozpin told me something like that once..."_

_Weiss smiled before responding, "Then he may very well be a wise man, after all."_

_"Hah, yeah," she concurred with a light chuckle, "So I guess it's another thing that makes us different from Grimm, right?"_

_The heiress paused before deciding to go with full disclosure on her opinions in front of this young girl who was willing to listen, "Mmm, nooo, one can say music is the voice from our hearts, of what's inside us. The Grimm don't have that. So no, it doesn't make us 'Different' from them... it makes us _Better._"_

_RAWWWR!_

The merciless roar from the charging Alpha snaps Weiss back to the present, a glyph appearing in front of her right on time to deflect the Grimm's initial claw attack as her aria of a Mirror now replays in her mind.

Recalling a certain royal test from long ago, Weiss chooses a similar approach as she feints against its second strike to lash out with a back-handed riposte that sends the massive Beowulf staggering back and then follows it with an upward slash with her red-runed blade that takes its arm clean off. Every motion is calculated and precise, her musical metaphor refining her technique with every motion.

Turning the barrel of her rapier held out in front of herself to blue, a blue glyph appears underneath her as the fearsome beast pounces on her position. Tumbling backwards to dodge the Alpha's grasping claws at the last possible second, the heiress quickly stands and lifts her rapier-wielding arm to spring the trap, setting the blue gravity glyph below the Grimm in reverse and causing the confused creature to levitate freely in midair long enough for her to hold it in place with several light blue ice glyphs shot out from the point of her blade.

"Whoaaa..." the rest of team RWBY states slack-jawed as Weiss leaps several meters into the air, her entire blade glowing a vibrant white with her aura as she rebounds downwards off a final blue gravity glyph behind her to run the Alpha through the chest with so much force that the entire beast dissipates like black mist from the strike.

Landing gracefully in the center of the arena, she stands only to scoff in disbelief as she stares at the six Ursa Majors surrounding her. Majors.

'Absolutely ludicrous!' she can't help mentally exclaiming as she checks her barrel once again.

Red fire dust is out as well as the white one, which is a single-use finishing strike. Light blue ice dust is low, and there isn't enough in the remaining three chambers to be of real use on their own. But her internal reprimands for playing her ace so soon get cut short by a flurry of paw-swipes coming in from the pack of heavily-spiked Ursae. Flipping and tumbling back around their attacks, she finds herself with her back against the wall. Things aren't looking very optimistic until suddenly-

_Knock Knock Knock_

The heiress frantically looks around for the source of the noise as the Ursae slowly close in on their prey.

_Knock Knock Knock_

Left, right, nothing. Just black fur and bony white spikes belonging to six growling owners, 'Unless...'

But looking up, she spots a little brunette head poking over the side of the wall directly above her followed by a neon blue one. Ruby and Neptune. The rest of team RWBY, Sun and even some of team JNPR follow suit as the audience cranes their necks around the arena to see what'll happen to the prominent young woman.

Ruby seems to be trying to tell her something.

"I can't hear you!" Weiss half-mouths, half-whispers upwards to avoid drawing in the Ursae too quickly that already seem to be savoring the moment of impending victory, "Besides, I'm kind of busy trying to stay _alive_ right now!"

_KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK_

"Fine! You adorable ingrate..." She states before doing the only thing she could've done in that situation anyway - raise herself over a block of ice cast by Myrtenaster as the Ursae finally pounce underneath her, giving her the height advantage to fend off the Grimm temporarily from her icy platform next to the wall.

"What is it?!" She calls backwards without turning to look at the students behind and just above her so that no one can notice what she's doing.

"Hey, just wanna say you're doing great, Snow Angel!" Neptune begins quickly before Weiss unleashes a jagged block of ice on an Ursa that was managing to climb the icy platform, "But it's not looking too good for you down there right about now!"

"Ya _think!?_"

"Look, me and Neptune were talking," Ruby now cuts in just as quickly, "He thinks you can combine the remaining dust in your barrels-"

"-And use your Semblance in more than one way _at the same time!_" Neptune adds as another two Ursae get their footing on the ice.

"Are you _crazy!?_" she hisses, no one else hearing the conversation between the three seemingly unrelated students as the sounds are drowned out by loud roaring and the screeching of Myrtenaster, "That's impossible!"

"Because you've probably never _tried_ it!" Neptune quips.

"Neptune's right! Weiss, you remember the time you told me about music and fighting?" Ruby's voice is rushed but the young lady catches every word, "This is just like that, too! Don't notes have like harmonies or chords or do-hickeys like that!? I think you can at least give it a try!"

Two more Ursae stunned with falling blocks of ice, Weiss is surprised that the crimsonette actually remembers that night... but private thoughts aside, she's left with little other choice but to consider the possibility as she realizes her ice dust is out, too.

"How am I _possibly_ to do such a thing!"

"Music isn't just about placement, Weiss," Ruby begins as the three remaining Ursae begin crawling up and the three below recover their ground, "it's about _feeling_, too!"

"Breathe! Feel! _Execute!_" is all Neptune can say before the entire platform crumbles under the weight, the heiress leaping off to land on the far side of the arena away from the ravenous monsters.

She takes what little time she has left and decides to trust her partner and blue-haired friend.

'Alright, Schnee. You can do this. Breathe...' she inhales and exhales, relaxing internally despite the Ursa Majors' detection of her new location.

'Feel...' she closes her eyes, her mind clear of all other thought except the dust left in her barrels as the Grimm charge from various locations.

'Execute.'

Opening her eyes, her pupils instantly dilate as the arena and the incoming dark creatures go slo-mo all around her, action following quicker than thought itself.

"HAH! YAH! HIYAH!"

Three slashes through the air with Myrtenaster. With the first, six blue glyphs are shot out from her blade and place themselves behind the back of each Ursa's beefy skull. With the next downward slash, her entire form begins glowing yellow with a yellow speed glyph forming underneath her before her blade turns violet-black with the remainder of her dust. And with the _third_ slash... well...

_SHING SHING SHING SHING SHING SHING!_

In two blinks of an eye, she lands in front of the platform in a crouch on one knee, Myrtenaster held out behind the heavily panting heiress as smoke from spent dust rises from both fighter and blade.

Behind her, the massive Grimm slowly stand in shock before six heads slowly roll off and land on the floor. Six Ursa Majors downed in a single strike. Standing up herself, Weiss doesn't even notice Miss Goodwitch come out and announce her victory as she quickly turns to find Ruby in the crowd. She finally finds her ecstatic leader jumping around the stands in mirth as the final part of her memory echoes through her mind of that night...

_"I agree, Miss Schnee! Hahah," the crimsonette continued after a momentary pause for reflection on Weiss' meaningful response, "thanks for the lesson!"_

_But suddenly, she looked nervous, eyes darting to the side to avoid direct contact with the confused heiress' gaze, lips scrunched up to the side as well as if trying to hold back something she really wanted to say. But knowing Ruby, Weiss knew she wasn't going to be able to hold it in for much longer._

_"You know, Weiss... I've never really heard you talk so much. Like, not shouting or anything. Just... talking."_

_Of course, her first reaction to such an off-handed statement would've BEEN to shout, but instead she found herself lightly blushing at how true Ruby's words actually were._

_"Dolt..." She finally began with an unexpected chuckle, "I... guess I've never really had someone to talk to."_

_"Well you have me, so don't forget to do that every now and then and stuff!" Ruby declared proudly, which after another moment of silence then seemed to change to a surprisingly forlorn tone, "A-And for the record, you uh... Weiss, you really have become the best teammate I could ever ask for..."_

_Why would she say it like that? The heiress held her breath, unsure of what to do except to keep listening._

_Ruby paused for a bit, scratching the back of her head sheepishly as she continued with difficulty, "And I been thinkin', after the war and stuff, I guess I was thinking that I really should tell you that... cuz you never know when we might not be here anymore, you know? A-And after we lost the people we did, I just... I just..."_

_She didn't let herself finish, quickly getting off the bed to hide the inevitable tears before being unexpectedly held back by Weiss who grabbed onto her wrist._

_"Ruby."_

_The little girl sniffled loudly before lowering her arm from in front of her face, revealing that a few tears had already fallen. For some in Beacon, the loss in the war hit harder than others... Ruby, Yang and Blake each had their reason as well. And in having taken those moments to really sympathize with her young leader, those feelings finally hit home for Weiss._

_Weiss understood that, she understood that feeling of despair well... all she had to think about was her own snow-white mother who was no more. And with her face softly lit by the straggling rays of moonlight cascading into the silent dorm, her shimmering hair flowing down and around her small shoulders, she let Ruby see something the crimsonette had never expected to see in all her days at Beacon._

_Weiss had tears in her eyes, too._

_"I-I uh, heh," the heiress began with a light chuckle, wiping the few tears that had fallen upon seeing her leader open up like she had, "I want you to know I feel the same way too, Ruby. I couldn't have asked for a better leader. And the best part is that we're still here to remind you of that."_

_And she meant every word._

_Ruby grinned from ear to ear before suddenly doing something the icy heiress never would've expected either... she shot her arms out through the little space between them and in a split-second had her surprised partner locked in a tight hug._

_Weiss could feel her heart pounding within her chest in shock and was about to push back by reflex until after only a moment more was instead overcome with an almost forgotten feeling... warmth. Warmth from someone who truly cared. She felt her breathing slow to a halt as she wrapped her arms around Ruby as well, warmth slowly growing into joy as they remained in their embrace until Ruby finally pulled back._

_"T-Thanks, Weiss. I never thought I'd hear you say that... That means a lot to me!"_

_After another brief moment, the heiress merely smirked and scoffed at the remark as she crossed her arms in front of her, having recovered her usual countenance, "Oh you're not THAT bad, you little dunce."_

_"Yeah yeah, I get it," Ruby replied, shaking her head with a smile before climbing up to her bed above her, "Grumpy on the outside, all mushy and sweet on the inside. G'nite, Weiss!"_

_Weiss returned underneath her sheets with a grin, actually feeling much happier than she had in a very long time._

_"Good night, Ruby."_

_Bunkmates with Ruby Rose, leader of team RWBY._

_At that moment, Weiss decided that she wouldn't have it any other way._

* * *

"That was... surprising," James mentions to Ozpin as the elegant heiress walks out of the arena.

"It is the first time we've seen a student successfully manipulate more than two different forms of dust in tandem in a _very_ long time," The Headmaster muses as well.

"Her family would be interested in gaining further insight into this devleopment... I was right, they should've kept her in Atlas."

"In your academy?" Ozpin now retorts with a playful scoff, "James, and here I thought you had no sense of humor."

With a sideways glance at his colleague and a small smirk of his own, Ironwood continues as if not having heard him, "They let Weiss come to Vale so she could pursue her wishes while her sister took the reins of the company, thinking that she wouldn't have stood a chance defending the company against its enemies in Atlas."

"So much for presumption."

"I doubt it'll be as easy for Winter to succeed Sebastian Schnee if Weiss decides to return to the company now." The General remarks with a grave air, "After all, Weiss Schnee_ is _the eldest... even if only by a few seconds."

Ozpin leans back in his seat as Glynda exits the platform below, the Headmaster seemingly perturbed but hiding it behind a sip of coffee, "Now _that's_ a name I was hoping never to hear again."

Ironwood lets out a small snicker at Ozpin's reaction to the company president who is widely known for his questionable policies and discriminatory beliefs, "Ozpin, there are worst men out there, trust me. Take it from a General who knows..."

James lets his voice trail off as the platinum blonde disciplinarian appears at their row, but it is Ozpin who gets the last word.

"In any case, one thing is for certain," he concludes as the General and the Huntress glance at the silver-haired man who pensively contemplates the remnants of the Ursa Majors' disintegrating carcasses as they finally disappear, "We have a rising heiress on our hands."

* * *

"It's official. Weiss is both Beauty _and_ Beast!"

Blake glares at Sun after he makes that statement, causing him to chuckle nervously as the rest of teams RWBY, JNPR, VNDS and the Dorme fighters meet the heiress outside.

Satisfied with the silent punishment she has inflicted on her fellow faunus, the catgirl merely rolls her eyes with a smirk.

"More like Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde."

"_Hey!_"

"Sorry Princess, Blakey has a point!~" Yang continues the teasing where her partner left off. Then Ruby cuts in.

"Don't listen to them, they're dumb and you're awesome!" she states excitedly to a still peeved Weiss, "But hey, I heard you and Neptune made some kind of bet for if I won my qualifying round?"

Even though the question causes her to pause for a moment, it only takes another second or so before Weiss' grimace turns to a triumphant smirk.

"Ah yes, our little wager. Ready to submit to the terms, Neptune?"

The blacksmith blushes before looking down, "Y-Yeah."

At the few raised brows at Weiss upon seeing his reaction, she elaborates with gusto, "Neptune will take me out on a date... And he _has_ to ask me out to dance."

Jaune cringes a little with a sympathetic smile at the guy, "_Ooh_, I feel for ya, bro."

"But, what if _Neptune_ would've won?" Nora asks, head cocked to one side in curiosity.

Neptune blushes even harder, clearly uncomfortable with this wager becoming public knowledge. Sun steps in willingly.

"Don't worry, I got this, blue-tard!" he begins with a wide grin and a pat on Neptune's back, "It's kinda lame. If he would've won, Weiss would've had to dye her hair navy blue and walk the halls of Beacon cosplaying as Lucina from Fire Emblem for a day..."

Neptune looks up with eyes narrowed at his friend, sensing that Sun is about to continue, "Dude, don't even-"

"Which is kind of a shame, really! Cuz I know for a _fact_ that what he _really_ would've liked to have bet for was a nice long kis-"

_ZZzzzZzzRAK!_

"-SSSAAAAHHHYOUUUFFFUUU-qugh."

Sun is suddenly surrounded by electric energy and drops to the ground, revealing a certain trident at the location where his back used to be. Neptune retracts his weapon with a flawlessly serene expression as he looks down at his tazed teammate.

"Oh I'm sorry, did I do that? Hmm, I must've accidentally activated my weapon on purpose... my bad."

The students do their best to withhold their laughter but can't help it once they notice Weiss blushing crimson as well. Blake hides her snickers behind her hand before bending down to lend the recovering monkey-faunus a hand.

"You alright, Sun?"

The heavy-lidded faunus finally focuses on the raven-haired girl in front of him, his speech still a little slurred.

"Heyyy there... yyyou're kinda cute..."

Now blushing herself, Blake rolls her eyes and picks him up placing his arm around her shoulder for support as he groggily whirls his head to his friend, pointing at Neptune's general direction.

"Hey mannn, dat wuz messsed _up_."

At this point Cipher chuckles as the students make their way back to their seats, shaking his head as he adds, "Right-o, and the sky is bigger than the ground, mate. Wot else is new?"

'I can think of a thing or two...' Blake mentally muses as she notices Ruby and Weiss walking side by side as usual, but with Seul next to the crimsonette's other side and Neptune beside the heiress as they get to their seats.

* * *

**A/N: That was hard. I mean, it was the toughest character to figure out... I never realized it would be so hard to get into Weiss' head! So, I read fic, lots of fic... and I think I kinda got a good angle on her, at least one that hasn't been explored much. Meh, not totally satisfied but I hope you guys like it! Weiss can't stay a complete jerk forever, you know! (Despite how much easier that would be for me to jot down as a writer) ;) Anywho, I'll be nice and say only two more chapters remain until the 'qualifiers' are done and we see some VS action between our favorite RWBY characters! :D You can guess which two characters are left to write for individually...**

**Oh, props to anyone who finds the Gavin Free quote from RT ;D**

**Sorry the chapter took so long to write, I felt Weiss was a tad too one-dimensional and I finally found a way to expand on her, which I think will work just fine. Music, I believe, has a powerful effect with her. It's the only way she ever found to express her feelings in her loneliness and stuff... anyways, time for some thank-you notes!**

***Nick: Thank you! And yeah, well Seul likes her eyes, that's all, and with Davin, the Grimm part was trying to take over and stuff and Grimm have red eyes, so when he finally managed to control it temporarily, his irises were red for a short time before killing Darovit and severing the tie between them and releasing himself from the effects of The Turning. Yep, Q&amp;A man, it's my bread and butter. Let me know if you have any questions (and with the Pheremone dust fic, I've toyed around with the idea and might do it someday ;) )**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! And I sure have played it! And maybe the end of this chapter answered your question? :3**

***ImSoAwesome: Thank you! And it was definitely fun to write! :)**

***Tommy2486: Thank you! I never thought I could enjoy writing until I tried it, and now I'm glad I did :D**

***7Artemis7: Thank you! And soon... Very soon ;)**

***TheBluePsychoticStrategist: Thank you! I appreciate the critique and always try to keep it fresh! ;D (shakes head at own use of corny fresh phrase) hah nice Scooby Doo reference!**

***potatoslayer4: Thank you! I never noticed how well Ruby and Seul could jive together until a good friend of mine pointed it out :)**

***Lazercorn51104: IIIMMM FFFLLLYYYIIINNNGGG! Ahahah :D**

**And a final note... I got a poll up on my profile for you, dear readers, to choose the Jaune-based pairing in my next fic (likely a oneshot but you never know!) so feel free to toss in a vote if you like! As of later today the vote will go blind and will likely stay open till the end of Volume 2 :) anyways, next chapter will be featuring our very own (and my personal favorite) Blake Belladonna! XD**

**As always, Happy Reading!**


	58. Vol 2-13: The Catgirl

_**The Trials, Pt XIII**_

_"Above the darkness and the shame.  
__Above the torture and the pain.  
__Above the ridicule and hate.  
__Above the binding of our fate."_

* * *

_Name, Blake Belladonna..._

_Affiliation, Beacon..._

_Weapon, Gambol Shroud..._

_Semblance, Shadow..._

The echo from Miss Goodwitch's voice on the loudspeakers dies down inside the amphitheater as she looks down from the platform at the lone girl in a little black bow standing in the arena below her and her colleagues.

_Are you ready to commence your trial, Miss Belladonna?_

The catgirl raises her head to look at the platinum blonde huntress and gives a small nod before unsheathing her precious Gambol Shroud.

_Very well, it's time._

Up in the stands, Ruby glances over at her sister sitting in front of her who seems to show concern as she watches the raven-haired girl sigh heavily in wait for her imminent attackers.

Plural, being the case that Ironwood had brought in a twist into this year's tournament after gaining a certain degree of operational control: first round entrants would need to show their grit by defeating a pack of Grimm as a final qualifier in order to continue into the more traditional Vytal Tournament.

"Hey Yang, everything okay?"

The blonde brawler merely takes another moment observing her partner before responding absent-mindedly, her gaze still set on Blake, "Huh? Uh... yeah. All good, sis."

"Yaaang..." Those silver eyes demand a better response, eliciting a small groan from Yang who now turns to face her sister.

"Look, I uh... I kinda can't remember the last time Blake went up against more than one opponent on her own at the moment, kay? I'm worried about her. Satisfied?" She responds curtly.

"Mhm!" The crimsonette nods affirmatively with a small smile, the brawler turning back to see her partner and friend in the arena before feeling an unexpected hand on her shoulder, "Hey, we're worried for her too..."

Yang glances over her shoulder to notice genuine understanding from her sister, and interestingly enough, from the normally icy heiress sitting next to her leader as well. Weiss flashes a rare warm smirk before speaking up.

"Blake qualified for a reason, Xiao Long. I'm sure she can handle herself."

But Yang knows better, having spent more time with the faunus-girl and having gotten to know more about what made her seemingly socially introverted partner tick. Finally left to her own devices, she focuses on Blake once more, propping her chin on both hands as the match is about to begin.

And Blake's mind is indeed wandering, the usually poised young woman uncharacteristically fidgeting with her weapon. Something about Miss Goodwitch's final words, bringing her back to the events of long ago...

She looks up and finds Weiss in the stands, her unmistakably apologetic look baffling the heiress for a brief moment as she recalls another secret untold, the story of the White Fang's largest heist: an entire trainload of Schnee Company dust, gone.

'I'm sorry Weiss... I truly am... For what I did, for what I _was_-'

_Beep._

The sound of the commencement signal merely plunges her deeper into said memory, the lifeless robotic sound reminiscent of that of the first Atlesian Knight-130's command on said train.

_'Intruder, identify yourself.'_

But the mental image of that machine and its short-lived demand is promptly replaced by two dozen Beowulves that surround her, the canine-like beasts of Grimm surrounding their feline prey.

Blake drops into combat stance, words of an old mentor unexpectedly escaping her lips.

"Looks like we're gonna be doing this the hard way."

_RAWWWR!_

A single Beowulf approaches but is quickly incapacitated by a sudden discharge of Gambol Shroud, the sheath propelling the blade out backwards like a projectile and knocking the Grimm back with the blunt impact of its hilt. Blake pulls at the ribbon connected to her blade in midair while lauching herself forward with a shadow-clone, hand catching hilt in midair and slicing the Beowulf in half before it can even recover its footing before returning the blade to its sheath.

This, of course, angers the remaining Beowulves.

Charging the catgirl, two more creatures of Grimm fall to the swift strikes of Gambol Shroud's sharpened sheath which may as well be a blade in itself, every one of Blake's motions fluid and precise. Each strike blending into the next, she dashes back and forth within a circle of attacking Beowulves with incredible speed, slashing and dismembering the dark creatures until they're nothing but smoking pieces. The majority of the pack a few paces away, she holds the sheath at the ready before another Beowulf charges. Sorry sucker.

"Huh. Yah!"

She twirls her sheath as she dashes at it and strikes, beheading it before flipping in midair and dispatching another one upon landing with a lethal slash through the torso and skidding onwards towards the remaining pack. Crouching under a swift claw-strike of a third Beowulf at nearly the same time, she extends her weapon underneath and slices off both legs, much to the pleasure of a cheering girl in the crowd that the faunus-girls swears must be Nora. With her continued forward momentum, hands divide sheath from blade as Blake strikes another Beowulf through the chest and flips over its already-disintegrating corpse before landing in the middle of a larger circle of Grimm, now dual-wielding sheath and blade in her hands.

"First of all, I can do that," a relieved yet still-smug Yang states in the stands above, crossing her arms and sitting back with a smirk as her teammates seated behind her roll their eyes.

Meanwhile, another Beowulf goes down to a combo strike from blade and sheath as Blake dashes out from the charging Grimm, several more going down to her expertly placed stabs and strikes from her weapons before the final one charges her in full rage. One and another claw-strike fails to connect with its target before Blake comes up underneath it with a powerful strike from the sheath, launching it into the air and delivering several more fatal slashes to its dark form before Blake sends it flying with a powerful kick into the wall.

'Hmm, I guess I shouldn't have been so dramatic,' she thinks to herself nonchalantly as she sheaths her weapon, believing the match to be over.

"Look out behind you!" Jaune cries out suddenly, right on time for Blake to turn and see about two dozen more Beowulves charging her from the other end of the arena.

Rosy pink lips curl into a smirk as the catgirl lets familiar words escape her lips once more, a reminder that old memories always die hard, "Let's do this."

The two leading wolf-like Grimm are met with an impossibly rapid succession of strikes from the ground all the way into the air with the sheath of Gambol Shroud, no match against the experienced Belladonna as she kicks the lifeless creatures away and finds herself staring down a seemingly more ravenous pack of Grimm. For each problem, its own solution.

Mecha-shifting Gambol Shroud into pistol form, the long ribbon around her arm quickly unwinds as she throws the weapon out in front of her to a Beowulf like a kusarigama, the ribbon itself gripped in her fist and its other end tied around the trigger as Blake pulls back.

_BLAM!_

Like Crescent Rose, every discharged round only increases the speed and lethality of the bladed pistol, which now comes back with enough force to cleave the Beowulf in two and to continue flying out behind Blake. Another tug and discharge, and Gambol Shroud comes back forward in spinning fury to dispatch several more Grimm that attempt to charge her, not a single one passing the fairly large perimeter defined by the kusarigama. Now jumping over the recoiling weapon, Blake spins in the air to add momentum to the already deadly weapon which adds a third dimension to her attacks, cutting apart Grimm coming in from every side and from above before landing in a crouch and hooking a lone Beowulf in front of her at the waist with the nook of her bladed pistol.

_BLAM!_

Pulling back her weapon, the recoil splits the Grimm in half before Blake launches herself forward with another shadow-clone, her form blurring as six more Beowulves fall in pieces without even seeing what hit them. Switching back to dual-wielding mode, two more Grimm fall in close range combat before the weapon is reverted to a kusarigama, Blake swinging the weapon out in front of her repeatedly to hack the remaining Beowulves to shreds.

"Hup. Hyah!"

Down to three Beowulves, she slices at two before a third tries to blindside her but to no avail, all three now being kicked up into the air and sliced at some more before the third gets kicked down to the ground. Leaping down to the ground first with the aided boost from a shadow-clone, Blake is already waiting for the incoming Beowulf with the barrel of her weapon aimed at its bony facemask, to which a final shot puts it out of its grim misery.

The other two Beowolves are dead before they even hit the ground.

As Blake sheathes her weapon once more and surveys the damage of nearly fifty smoking corpses around her, so much like those androids on that fateful heist, she can't help but wonder...

'What if Adam wouldn't have been so heartless towards the crew. Would I even be here now?'

She shakes the thought from her mind.

'Hmpf. Reminiscence only breeds nostalgia. I'm where I need to be.'

_YYAAAARGH!...hissssssss_

Just then, a sudden high-pitched roar and ominous hiss brings her back to the present, catgirl turning to face none other than a King Taijitu only yards away. Her shoulders slump in disbelief at her final opponent.

"Snakes... Why'd it have to be _snakes?_"

The giant Grimm serpent strikes first, the dual-headed beast delivering a rapid succession of fang-based attacks which the cat-faunus struggles to keep ahead of. Flipping and spinning above the charging serpent's heads, she finally finds an opening and leaps at its white-scaled neck with her cleaver-like sheath at the ready but only to find that its hide is tougher than it looks. Her weapon rebounds off the thick scales and she's met with a powerful riposte from the serpent - a headbutt from the black head that sends her flying several yards away.

Getting back up with some difficulty, she's able to dash away in the nick of time before the white snakehead comes crashing down at her previous position with fangs bared for the kill. Grunting in frustration, the catgirl dashes around two more strikes from the behemoth's heads before leaping at the white head once more.

"Unfortunately for _you_, fiend, I'm like a bad penny..." she begins as she fires Gambol Shroud in kusarigama form into its neck and uses the ribbon to transfer her momentum into a high vertical leap before pulling the pistol back and leaving a sizeable gash on the Grimm, "I always turn up."

Flipping herself a few times as she falls, Blake swings the bladed pistol several more times to tear open the scaly flesh at the site of the gash even more, causing the King Taijitu to roar in pain long enough for her to dash in front of it and fire the blade into its white-scaled throat like a grappling weapon. Launching herself up to its open mouth with the pull of the ribbon, the agile faunus props herself between its jaws and yanks Gambol Shroud back into her grasp to unload a full clip of ammunition up ito its head.

Logically enough, the plan works, the lifeless snake-head falling to the arena grounds with a crash as the cat-faunus leaps out safely to the ground. Unfortunately, she forgets the twin black head, which suddenly blindsides her with a ravenous roar and leaves her barely enough time to duck underneath its deadly fangs.

'That was too close,' she thinks to herself quickly with a measure of anxiety as it passes over her, surrounding her with its massivbe body, 'it barely missed me by the width of my-'

Bow.

Reaching up to her head in a rush and suddenly feeling cat ears, her fear comes true as she frantically looks up and notices the slender piece of fabric trailing from the beast's mouth, caught on a single glistening fang. With the Grimm having circled itself around her like a python ready to constrict its prey, she knows that her secret is still shielded by the cover of its hide around her but also realizes that in another split second, people will inevitably notice.

Her team notices the trailing fabric from the King Taijitu's fang as well and gasps in realization as the catgirl does the best thing she can in this situation: shadow-vault. Over and over and over again.

Blake's form begins to blur once more as clone after clone vaults her through the air like a fireworks show - except with more... _Blake_ \- as she chases the Grimm head in an ironic game of cat-and-mouse, ensuring that as many clones appear around her at once so that no one in the audience can distinguish her faily conspicuos faunus traits. Finally reaching her goal, she yanks the bow out of its mouth, leaps down to the grounds under the cover of a few more shadow clones and refastens her bow all in one motion.

But even her ninja-like speed in executing her recovery proves too long as she is suddenly rammed by the black snake head on her side into the arena wall.

She knows she's in trouble as the giant creature of Grimm pulls its head back and bares its fangs for its final strike, her stunts with her clones having sapped her of her precious aura, but just as the King Taijitu's finishing attack on the downed catgirl begins its forward motion, a timer quickly ticks to a discernible _ding_ and the entire head blows off in a potent explosion.

Blake only has to look around for a moment in confusion before noticing James Ironwood appear on stage.

_Miss Belladonna, _Ironwood begins cooly as the strained faunus-girl finally manages to get on her feet, _you were unable to defeat the full allotment of Grimm opposing you, and as a result your Aura dropped to the red. For safety, of course, every captured Grimm used in this tournament has a small but potent explosive charge implanted in their skull to ensure no exceptionable injury occurs in the event of a contestant's defeat. That being said, victory goes to the opposing forces. Thank you for your participation._

* * *

The rest of team RWBY, Sun and Neptune are the first ones to rush down to the arena exit to meet the brooding young woman who slips out and passes them with only one thing to say before she exits the amphitheater.

"I need a moment alone."

And just like that, the five students are left to stare between each other and where their friend had left for a moment before Yang turns to the monkey-faunus beside her.

"Which one of us should go after her?"

Sun looks at the exit and silently sighs with concern for Blake.

"I got this."

A few minutes later, Blake is standing in front of the main statue at Beacon academy, the entire area all but deserted due to the ongoing tournament in the vicinity. She closes her eyes and slowly lifts a hand to wipe away a tear as ghosts of a troubled past and figures of hateful thought mentally berate her for her most recent failure. On the verge of crying, she becomes startled when she hears a voice above her.

"You know, I keep telling people... you really _would_ look better without the bow."

Turning around and looking up, Blake finds herself responding with a half-chuckle, half sob, "Sun... how do you keep finding me?"

"Ah well that's _easy_," he begins as he confidently strolls over to her side, "You've got the coolest outfit, arguably the sweetest weapon - after _mine_, obviously - and the most incredible bu-uh... _hair_... I've ever seen! I could track you just by the scent of Herbal Essences all the way here! Which is kinda weird. But so's the fact that you seem to like coming here a lot and stuff..."

Sure, the the part about her hair wasn't what he meant to say at first, but it was still true. Her hair smelled great! But still, the classic Blake-stare causes him to chuckle nervously and continue.

"Aaand you were the only person out here? Just like the first time I found you."

Finally unable to hold back a smirk at his goofy approach to being 'suave', she merely shakes her head and replies casually as she dries her eyes, "So, you want to know more about why I come here..."

Sun shrugs nonchalantly, "Actually, yeah. That wouldn't hurt, I guess."

Giving him another glare, though it's not a fairly severe one, she then turns back to the statue and sighs before beginning.

"We're here to become Remnant's next generation of guardians. That's what I'd be if I were to become a Huntress. But if you think about it, Hunters slay _beasts_, and I can't even slay a pack of Grimm on my own... so, where does that put me?"

With the meaningful pause that follows, Sun captures the true significance of Blake's words as his gaze drifts from the proud Hunters on top of the statue to the dying Beowulves below. But Faunus aren't beasts. And definitely not beasts of _Grimm_.

"Always rainbows and sunshine with you..."

Blake scoffs at the off-handed remark and turns to him, angry with his lack of understanding, when the first words of protest stop in her mouth upon seeing the monkey-faunus with his arms out for an embrace.

"Look, uh, I'm gonna come out straight with this... I really suck at making people 'feel better' and all that junk. And Monty knows I have _no_ idea how to handle a crying woman..."

"No kidding," she grumbles, eliciting an unexpectedly hurt expression from him, his arms almost dropping as a result.

She then realizes how hard he's really trying as he continues anyway, "The thing is, I uh, I read somewhere one time that hugs make kittens feel better and stuff, but they have to come to you first for it to work... and Blake, you _really_ need a hug right now..."

His arms back up and waiting, Blake freezes for a moment as she thinks back to her past. Parents out of the picture from a young age and membership in an anti-human organization had forced her to live a life without meaningful physical contact. Or emotional contact, for that matter. And she had learned to live without either and felt completely fine with that... right? She sighs as she considers her options and looks back up at the faunus-boy and his rather disarming smile.

'Well,' she finally thinks to herself, reason being bested by her heart for once, 'losing really does _suck_.'

Looking down to hide her imminent blush, she takes a few small steps forward into him to which he lightly wraps both arms around her, making sure not to startle the girl who hadn't been hugged since before that year's school dance. She finally lets herself open up to him, causing Sun to smile as he feels two slender arms wrap themselves around his torso as well.

"There, isn't that better?" he begins softly after another moment, to which Blake nods into his shoulder without even realizing it. She doesn't realize her tears begin forming again as well, but this time for a completely different reason.

All this time with these troubling thoughts, and it turns out that Sun's advice about _hugs_ turns out to be the remedy? It was a pleasant surprise, really, to find out he cared enough to risk looking like a total idiot having his offer for a hug rejected and all, and Blake knew that even if the courtyard around the statue were filled with students and staff, he wouldn't have done a single thing differently. And during all this, she doesn't even realize how tightly she's begun to hug him as well... that strong heartbeat beating beside her cat ears, that feeling of security, that _warmth_...

"Hmm, you really _do_ smell like Herbal essences..." well, _that_ remark is certainly enough to snap her out of her Sun-induced bliss.

"Dork," she remarks jokingly as she pulls back slowly and playfully smaks him on the shoulder, "Is that your way of wooing me with words?"

"What? Pfft, no way! Just calling it how it is," he responds lightly before seemingly thinking for a moment, "No, _here's_ me wooing you with words:"

She watches him clear his throat before beginning, without dropping her arms around him, much to her amusement.

"*_ahem_* You lurk in the shadows, You strike from above, Come on - take my hand, And be my Ninja of Love."

'Well _that_ wasn't expected,' the catgirl thinks to herself in a slight panic as she tries looking down to hide her blush. Only to see DEM ABS. '_Not helping!_'

She looks back up at him despite her crimson blush, quickly thinking up a way to wipe that self-satisfied smirk off his face, "Y-You probably say that to _all_ the helpless faunus girls you meet."

He merely returns a warm smile before answering, "What girls?"

Still in his arms, she stares at him for a moment and finally grunts light-heartedly before letting her head drop onto his chest with a reluctant grin, all previous feeling of bewilderment or unworthiness having been brushed aside like a distant memory due to his jovial and caring nature. The sun to her dark clouds, the hope to her despair, the unsoppable force to her immovable object...

'Mmf,' she finds herself thinking as he gently leads her to his side and begins walking beside her towards the amphitheater, his arm still around her shoulder, 'I think I'm starting to like this one...'

* * *

**A/N: Blake. I don't fanboy often, but when I do, it's for Blake Belladonna. Nuff said. But anyone who read the prologue to this volume already can infer why, heh... anyways, one of my favorite chapters in this volume so far, so I hope you guys liked it! A little BlackSun cuz seriously, it's practically canon already. She's opened up only to Sun and Yang thus far and in my mind, Sun is winning. And for me - personally - it makes total sense personality-wise :D That being said, it's time for some thank you notes!**

***joae12: Thank you! Personally, I don't think I compare to some of the great writers I've come by on FFnet, but it's very nice to hear from someone who's enjoyed my story so far! I appreciate it XD**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! And yep, Ruby and Weiss have a really nice relationship in the show so far imo and though I'm still new to fluff and stuff, I think it works for each of them as they develop in the story :D But yea, in a pairing aspect, Ruby may or may not be spoken for already... ;)**

***Tommy2486: Hallelujah, Blake! Not sure why I wrote that, but I agree.**

***SpanishBulldog63: Thank you! It took a lot of work to get into Weiss' head, no lies, but I'm glad you think my choice in character development works! :) And yes, I did get your pm.**

***7Artemis7: Thank you! And I know, those are my thoughts exactly whenever I'm done reading one of YARN's incredible chapters :'(**

***potatoslayer4: Thank you! I agree completely and am glad I found a way to expand on her as well. Whether or not its canon remains to be seen *_crosses fingers_***

***Lazercorn51104: Ahaha, I know, man. Not so many references in that chapter or in this one, as they are more fluff-oriented and I don't wanna detract from that too much. But they're there, trust me *_cough cough Indiana Jones_* ;) Enjoy the easter egg hunt!**

***TheBluePsychoticStrategist: Thank you! It means a lot to read that and yes, references and plot require a delicate balance for either to work! Life is indeed getting busier and every review so far has helped me get to this point in the story!**

**So that's that! And hey, check it out, our lovable black cat Blake has taken Chapter number _13_ in Volume 2! Hehe, not on purpose :3**

**EDIT: Oh! Totally forgot to mention, according to Miles and Kerry (aka Jaune and Neptune), the directors of RWBY, Blake is indeed having an identity crisis in front of the statue in Season 1 before being found by Sun. So... the question Blake asks herself in front of the statue, questioning her place between Huntress and 'beast' as a faunus, is ACTUALLY canon! Ask them, it's true... ;D **

** In other news, OC requests are still open, and so is a poll on my profile for the Arc-based pairing that I should use for my next fic (whenever I get around to it, heh). Other than that, I'd like to put any lingering doubts to rest and declare that next chapter is indeed Yang's chapter, the "mid-season finale" to volume 2 where some major questions might be answered... And a few even bigger questions raised... Dundundun! So stay tuned for The Brawler, which will be coming out this week for sure! Take care, until next time!**

**And as always, Happy Reading!**


	59. Vol 2-14: The Brawler

_**The Trials, Pt XIV**_

_"Do not go gentle into that good night,  
__Rage, rage against the dying of the light."_

* * *

_Name, Yang Xiao Long..._

_Affiliation, Beacon..._

_Weapon, Ember Celica..._

_Semblance, Kinetic Empowerment..._

The echo from General Ironwood's voice on the loudspeakers dies down inside the amphitheater as the Atlesian leader looks down from the platform at the confident young blonde standing in the arena below him and his colleagues. The last entrant in this year's Vytal Tournament.

_Are you ready to commence your trials, Miss Xiao Long?_

The student merely cracks her knuckles with a subtle smirk before giving him a nod.

_Very well then, let's begin._

Up in the spectator stands above, Weiss leans over to her raven-haired partner with her most recent qualm.

"Kinetic Empowerment? Not a chance that Xiao Long _actually_ came up with that one."

"She didn't," Blake replies cooly, "_I_ did. Before today, she'd just say she was going Super Saiyan whenever she used her semblance."

Weiss rolls her eyes at the reference before sitting back in her seat next to Ruby, "She _would_. That dunce."

Ruby just stares at her teammate with a small measure of incredulity at the fact that the heiress understands the reference at all.

_Beep_.

The match having begun, James, Glynda and Ozpin take their seats above the arena to watch the final entrant face her opponents in a qualifying round 'twist' set by Ironwood after gaining a measure of operational control over the tournament as head of security: a pack of bloodthirsty Grimm.

In this case, a pack of two dozen Beowolves that swiftly surround the blonde who merely looks them over with her hands behind her back.

After only a moment, a large Beowulf that seems to be the pack leader charges the smiling girl at full force, who waits until the final moment before unleashing a powerful punch that sends it flying into the arena wall several dozen yards away. Now pulling back into a combat-ready stance, the audience watches as Ember Celica engages at the ready, expanding over her forearms and locking in place with audible _clicks_ as its shotgun rounds load into place.

"C'mon boys," Yang now taunts the remaining Grimm that still stand staring at the disintegrating remains of their ex-leader, "blonde bombshell ain't gonna stop _herself_, y'know?"

_RAWWWR!_

With renewed fury, the creatures of Grimm all charge her at once, ready to tear their target to shreds with blind savagery. Which falls exactly into the trap she's set. Leaping up into the air, a single round locks in place in her right gauntlet before she lands with her fist to the ground in a sizable blast, the shockwave with enough force to warp the arena grounds beneath it and with enough explosive power to kill a few unfortunate wolf-like Grimm that were too close.

Standing up amid the flames, she can't help a small chuckle before taking complete control over the match, now leaping forward to flip and come down leg-first with enough momentum to literally kick the next Beowulf into the floor. Turning quickly to face the gaping jaws of another Grimm, another Beowulf is dispatched with a powerful uppercut before she turns and incapacitates two more with consecutive spinning kicks.

"Erg! Yah!"

Grunting with every delivered blow, Yang's style is arguably more akin to close-combat MMA than anything else, her confidence in her abilities evident as she now punches yet another wolf-like Grimm through the chest with a discharged round for added force and kicking back yet another before launching a third up in the air and knocking it into the ground with a downward gauntlet-powered jab.

Nowhere near finished, she runs up against a stunned Beowulf in her audacity to leap back and turn in midair to punch a second Beowulf behind her into another one, sending each staggering backwards before dispatching their fellow Grimm with another signature uppercut-shotgun blast combo. Sensing two more Beowulves charging from behind, she fires Ember Celica and uses the recoil to skid backwards under the first beast's claw-slash to weaken it with an elbow-strike to the abdomen and then a roundhouse kick that shatters its bony facemask.

Stopping the first strike of the second Beowulf with only the force of a high standing kick, Yang then delivers a flurry of powerful punches and elbow strikes from its throat down to its abdomen before pivoting on her foot to deliver a spinning kick that literally sends its dissolving corpse flying high into the stands.

She grins at her work and mumbles to herself enigmatically as students in the stands freak out and flee from the Grimm carcass, "Only cuz you asked for it, Warmach1ne32..."

With no time to lose, she then dashes to another wolf-creature of Grimm and stops it in its tracks with a quick jab to its throat before unloading a few rounds from Ember Celica into its chest and knocking it into the air with a crushing gauntlet-augmented uppercut before sending it into another arena wall with a finishing right hook.

_ROAAAR!_

A final Beowulf roars from the platform at the blonde brawler in a challenge, to which she happily obliges and points her gauntlets down before firing to send her flying through the air and landing on the platform beside the Grimm beast. Keeping her fists up at eye-level and elbows tucked in to her sides like a professional boxer, she dodges and ducks under several of its gruesome attacks, weaving around its claw-strikes with ease before responding with a backwards kick-flip that connects the right side of her boot with the left side of the Beowulf's face.

Dazing it long enough for her to land without further attack, she fires Ember Celica to propel her elbow into the Grimm's facemask and grabs its shoulder with one hand while grabbing the back of its head with the other before turning and slamming its face into the nearby arena wall with a stomach-wrenching _crack_. Needless to say, the Grimm corpse disintegrates nearly instantly into a cloud of black mist.

She turns back to the arena to see two Ursa Majors enter with murderous snarls.

"Oh, puh-_leeze_," she begins light-heartedly, "Two Ursae? I can _bear_-ly contain my surprise!~"

Rewarded by the faint sound of a facepalm from one of the very few audience members who would be able to hear her from that distance - Blake - Yang chuckles at her own pun with a snort as she unloads the empty shells from Ember Celica, replacing them with more powerful projectile rounds in ammo belts that she throws in the air and catches in each gauntlet.

_BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!_

Leaping into the air towards her new opponents, she fires five projectile rounds that whistle through the air but miss their targets that dodge them with unexpected speed, each Ursa now engaging the brawler in tandem to exact revenge for their fallen fellow Grimm. Landing and firing more rounds at them, Yang notices the Ursae split up and approach her from either side before one gets close enough to be a real threat.

Blocking a paw-swipe that sends her skidding back a few feet, Yang retaliates with another projectile round from her gauntlets that gets swiped away by one of the Ursae into the arena wall as if it were only a firecracker. A firecracker that causes a sizable explosion upon impact with said wall.

But now trying to block low strikes from an Ursa with kicks while using her gauntlets to block paw-strikes from the Ursa above, Yang receives a powerful back-handed paw-swipe to the body from the Grimm that sends her flying back to the ground across the arena.

Getting up with a slight cough, the brawler still sports her ever-present smirk as she taunts the Ursae, "Seriously? My little sister can't win a fist fight to save her life and she _still_ packs a bigger punch than you..."

Her voice suddenly trails off as she notices a shining golden lock of her hair that the larger of the two Ursae managed to tear off with that paw-swipe.

"YOU... You Heartless! You Hollows! Youuu... _Monsteeers!_"

Irises turning red and hair catching flame at the unacceptable treatment of one of her most prized possessions, the brawler propels herself forward with dual discharges of her gauntlets behind her to give her following punch on the larger of the two Ursae enough force to put a noticeable crack in its dense bony chestplate, unbelievably sending the giant beast through the air a few yards away.

Engaging the smaller of the two Ursa Majors, Yang now blocks its strikes with more high kicks before inflicting raw punishment on its torso with a barrage of fiery jabs that leave it open to a final uppercut with the strength to actually lift its massive body off the ground. Pulling her gauntlet back for maximum fire-power, the brawler then unleashes a devastating right hook that sends it head-first into the wall before it can even reach the ground, never to return again judging by the black smoke emanating from its now fairly crooked neck.

Her semblance at full power, she calls out angrily to the larger Ursa that promptly charges her in fury, "C'MERE, YOGI BEAR! IT'S ON!"

Being that it's an Ursa Major, its age actually _does_ make it smarter than your average bear, which comes to the fore as it surprises Yang with several paw-feints that force her to move back to make sure she can block the real strike when it comes.

And it certainly does, but with very little effect, much to the beast's chagrin.

Her rage at considerable levels, she is able to block its flurry of strikes with the inflections of just one gauntlet before grabbing its outstretched paw and turning inwards with the recoil from an Ember Celica shot to propel her elbow into its already-cracked chestplate, sending a large shard of bone deep into its rib cage. Not even giving the beast the chance to roar in pain, Yang maintains her grapple-like hold on the massive arm and uses it to flip herself above and around the Ursa's giant shoulder before delivering a fatal fiery kick to its head which causes nothing less than internal decapitation. Also fatal.

At this point, there was no fatigue, no desire to end this match. In her still building rage, Yang actually wanted it to continue. She hadn't gotten this much action since The Valean War, and she wanted to take advantage of every second.

A wish that promptly comes true with the appearance of a dozen Boarbatusks.

"C'MON, BRING IT!" she yells at the hog-like Grimm that now curl up and circle around her, rolling around her at high-speeds like giant spiky bowling balls.

Blake furrows her brows and glances over at Ruby, who's wearing a rather similar expression as they witness Yang's fury, her hair glowing brighter than ever and gauntlets locked and loaded.

"Something isn't right," Blake finally mentions, to which the crimsonette reluctantly nods.

"It's her first big fight since... well, you know," Ruby begins softly, not wanting to mention the events during the war in Vale by name, "maybe... maybe she's blowing off some steam..."

Knowing Yang, it could be likely. But Blake decides to keep a keener eye on the brawler as the pack of Boarbatusks finally engage.

The blonde flips through the air to dodge the high-speed attacks from the rolling Grimm, ball after ball of incoming fur and spikes forcing her to stay on her toes to avoid being run over by the strangely coordinated dark creatures. And soon enough, to her team's despair, her speed proves insufficient to dodge the multiple pinball-like attacks of the pack as the force of one impact after another send the brawler flying into an arena wall with the ramming hit of their final Boarbatusk's strike.

"AAGH!"

She knows her aura must be low, the aching pain from her growing bruises and the gash on her left arm says so. But now feeling the force of the impacts redirected into fuel for her own attacks, Yang grins darkly as she falls to the ground in a crouch before dashing at the nearest Boarbatusks with incredible speed. Seeing her approach, the nearest Grimm curls up and races to meet her head on.

"YAH!"

Planting her feet firmly, Yang gets down low and comes up with a huge gauntlet-powered uppercut that sends the Boarbatusk airborne before being roundhouse kicked into another approaching Grimm, the spikes of each impaling each other through their bony armor. Pivoting in her low stance, she then literally grabs another incoming Boarbatusk by the horns with a loud yell and flings it against two more of the dark beasts sending all three flying in a spiky heap into a nearby wall.

She's about to continue her onslaught when things suddenly take a very sharp turn for the worse.

Pale green eyes widen behind their spectacles in the stands above as fingers desperately try to get a response from their tablet.

"The systems have become unresponsive!" Glynda exclaims with concern, "the remaining Grimm are being released all at once... all of them!"

Ozpin quickly turns to look at the blank-faced General sitting at the Huntress' other side, "How many."

"N-Not too many!" Ironwood stutters uncharacteristically, "she's the final contestant of the day, so there are only but a few in the containment chambers... but I fear the remaining ones may be a bit-"

_RAWWWR!  
__YYAAARGH-hissss..._

A few Ursae emerge from the suddenly opened doors, but they aren't the source of those two ground-shaking roars. The Deathstalker and King Taijitu that follow, however, _are_.

"Holy..." Yang begins softly as the two mammoth-size Grimm loom over her and her odds of victory, her eyes turning lilac for just a second before reverting to red along with her rage, "RRRGH!"

Tumbling away from the first pincer-strike that could've left her pinned to the floor, Yang now dashes at the Boarbatusks once more, leaving a fiery trail in her wake. Going with her previous technique, she grabs the boar by the horns, the scalding heat alone from her raging frame enough to kill it before she throws it spikes-first into a nearby Ursa and dashes away once more to avoid the Deathstalker and the King Taijitu's strikes.

The audience gets to their feet and cheers for the brawler who seems to stand a chance as she repeats the process three more times, wrestle dominance against a Boarbatusk to grip its horns, fling it at an Ursa, repeat. But while she's on her way to capture a Boarbatusk to throw it at the last Ursa, the audience gasps as Yang is suddenly blindsided by one of the Deathstalker's pincers, it having moved into her path faster than she anticipated.

The momentary daze leaves her open to the subsequent impact from a rolling Boarbatusk at high-speed that throws her through the air right into arm's-reach of the remaining Ursa, which in turn lands a massive paw-swipe on her that sends her into the far wall with an audible _crack_. The entire amphitheater falls silent.

"It's a wonder she's not _dead_..." Ironwood states slack-jawed as he looks from the hole in the wall back down at Glynda's tablet that shows Yang's aura still active.

"It's only thanks to her semblance that they haven't torn her to pieces," Glynda states frantically, "but her semblance's potency is completely dependent on her aura levels, which have just dropped to the red!"

"We must end this now-" James begins before being cut off by the Huntress.

"_But the controls are not responding!_"

The General and Huntress stand up, ready to leap into the arena to eliminate the imminent threat and rescue Yang before-

"_Wait_..." Glynda and James turn back in disbelief at the sudden stern command to see Ozpin having taken out his own tablet and pulling up Yang's vitals, disbelief turning to shock as the Headmaster continues with restrained anticipation, "Her aura is no longer in the red."

Turning his tablet for them to see, his two colleagues' eyes widen at the sight of the health bar that has now gone from a low red to a full, pulsing radiant green. The three heads turn slowly back to the hole in the far wall.

In the meantime, the Grimm had been fighting amongst each other as they closed in to the hole to see who would get the kill. But between the three remaining Boarbatusks, the Ursa, the Deathstalker and the King Taijitu, it was the latter that takes the right for the kill with fangs bared, the remaining Grimm staying back to let it do the deed... until everything pauses for a moment when a bright golden glow appears from inside that hole.

A young woman with red irises and golden locks steps out unscathed and saunters over to the giant serpent, her injuries healed inexplicably and her aura blazing around her with so much heat that it warps the ground and walls around her. Ignoring all conventional logic, being a beast and all, the King Taijitu still rears back to strike her. But then the most curious thing happens.

In mid-strike through the air, Yang lifts a single hand at it, her aura flaring around her like a furnace in a cry that can be heard in every corner of the building, "_STOP!_"

And to everyone's utter stupefaction... It does.

But they don't get so much as a second to wonder, since no sooner does the serpent-like Grimm stop its attack that Yang dashes in a flare of heat to a Boarbatusk, delivering a right hook so strong that the entire boar-Grimm is blown to pieces with the might of her augmented semblance and Ember Celica. In the stands, Sun and Neptune stare open-mouthed at the feat, neither of them flinching as Sun begins absent-mindedly amd Neptune finishes without thinking.

"Ermahgerd..."

"That thing _literally exploded_."

_BLAM! Squish! BLAM! Splat!_

The remaining two Boarbatusks suffer a similar fate in the blink of an eye as Yang dashes between the monsters with feral growls and cries along with impossible speed that rivals even Ruby's. Blake is desperately trying to make sense of her partner's sudden boost in abilities when she finally notices a disturbing change taking place in the brawler.

Yang's irises remain red with her semblance on overdrive, but her aura, which was at one point shining a brilliant gold, is now slowly turning black. Of course, the rest of the stunned audience notice this as well when in another moment said aura turns her hair jet-black, too.

"What the..."

Finally realizing it herself, Yang stops for just a moment to examine her hair, but at a dangerous price - the Deathstalker finally acting, it aims its pincer right at her as the last Ursa pounces on her at the same time. Seeing herself in this situation, she does exactly what any brawler would do... ducking under the pouncing Ursa and incapacitating it in midair with a bone-breaking jab at its throat, she catches the beast in her arms and redirects it above her right on time for it to be impaled by the stinger, the Grimm meat-shield successfully stopping the stinger tip a few inches from her face.

Grabbing onto the disintegrating Ursa's fur, the brawler then uses the Deathstalker's instinctive action to pull its stinger back to supply her the upward thrust needed to go airborne right in the nick of time to avoid the two-headed King Taijitu strike on her position. But now letting go of the Ursa still stuck on the tip of the stinger, Yang turns herself in midair to unleash her salvo of projectile rounds on the heads of the serpent Grimm below.

Except _this_ time, each round is trailing fiery black aura that grants each bullet the piercing ability to rend both white and black snake heads into shredded pieces.

The now non-blonde brawler with jet-black hair lands gracefully right in front of the Deathstalker that is too busy trying to shake off the dissolving Ursa from its pincer to realize how close it is to sharing the deceased Grimm's fate. Calmly emptying the shells from her right gauntlet, this strange new side of her semblance drawing its power from a source other than her rage, Yang reloads it with a final ammo belt that locks in place.

Between all the exclamations from shocked audience members, the hum of the arena tech and the impatient roaring of the Deathstalker, only Blake catches Yang's words as the brawler walks right up to the Grimm's face and kisses her gauntlet before pulling it back all the way.

"This is for everyone your race has taken from me."

_BOOOOOM!_

The ground-shaking impact that follows her fist making contact with the Deathstalker's face along with the simultaneous discharge of every round in that gauntlet at the same time sends visible shockwaves through the leviathan's body, each bony segment along its torso buckling and breaking before the waves converge on her fist still embedded in its face, blowing out its eight eyes before the remainder of the beast follows through in a massive explosion of bone and dissolving Grimm particles all over the arena.

A stunned moment of silence follows before the entire building begins to shake with the fervor of the audience's cheer, Yang suddenly feeling whatever strange power that came over her recede as her hair and aura color slowly return to normal.

She turns to see General Ironwood on the platform... almost speechless.

_First-year student... kills a Deathstalker in one punch..._ he finally begins amid the pieces of rubble that was once an arena, _H-How?_

The blonde brawler looks around at the damage as if noticing it for the first time before turning back to the General with a gulp, "I have... _no idea_ where that came from..."

* * *

"You didn't tell us your semblance practically makes you One-Punch Man!" Sun cries out at the brawler as she exits the arena before Neptune corrects him.

"Woman..."

"Whatever! That's like the best manga skill come to life! _Ever_..." Sun exclaims before Neptune joins in for the last part, "OF ALL TIME!"

They each then give each other a high-five with a "_Yeah!_"

"I have no idea where that came from!" a frustrated Yang shoots at them, the rest of her team and team JNPR standing back to make sense of it all as the groups converge outside the amphitheater.

"I dunno," Ren adds unexpectedly, but not to the brawler's comment, "I stand by The Gamer as best manga skill to date."

"Aw, _pfffft!_" the two members of team VNDS reply, waving off the stoic's reference.

"Boys, please," Blake calmly chides them as she walks over to Yang with a worried expression, "Yang, the fact is that it had to have come from _somewhere_. Has this ever happened before?"

Yang shakes her head, completely fazed by whatever had just happened in the arena.

"Do you even remember what happened in there?" Blake continues as she notices her partner drawing blanks.

"I dunno... Not really. Did I _really_ tell a Grimm to stop its attack?" she asks, scratching the back of her head sheepishly and wincing as if admitting she had just asked the stupidest of questions.

"Yes, you did, Yang," Pyrrha replies with a fair measure of awe but also a small measure of something else as she continues, "And it listened. I haven't seen anything like it since..."

"The point is, it's never happened before!" Ruby cuts in angrily, defending her sister from any such implication as what the Spartan may be making, "and we have no idea why it started _now_, right Yang?"

The brawler merely shakes her head while racking her brain for any concrete memory of the transformation as the Dorme fighters close in.

"Oi, did you looney blokes _see_ that!?" Cipher begins as he does the 'mind blown' gesture with his hands along with the sound effect, "That wos abso-bloody-lutely _mental!_"

"Don't bother asking her," Weiss retorts as May and Seul join the group with Cipher as well in Yang's defense - for once - "She can barely remember a thing about it."

In reality, the heiress is a little miffed that her teammate can't remember as well.

'What if it's an ability that can be taught? Ugh, leave such incredible power to destroy Grimm in the hands of an oaf. Thanks a _lot_, Monty!' she thinks to herself in her impatience.

"Well, it sure didn't _seem_ like you either, Yang," Ruby continues, eyes narrowed slightly at her sister who she knows better than anyone else, "you looked completely different in there... first you were raging like Sun and after what happened you suddenly got all Zen-like. And that's _not_ you!"

"Hey!" Sun calls out in defense, "I have a condition, _okay!?_"

Silencing her fellow faunus with her glare, Blake turns her softened gaze back on Yang before putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Ruby's right. After you came out of that wall, you became significantly stronger without using your semblance as you normally do. And what worries me is that the Grimm seemed _afraid_ of you for it."

"It's like when Scott spawns... Nega-Scott!" A wide-eyed Nora admits with a rare tinge of fear in her voice.

"Please forgive her," Ren begins as he places a reassuring arm around the trembling hammer-maiden's shoulders, "She read the comics when we were younger and it gave her recurring nightmares for days-"

He can't continue speaking due to the fact that Nora suddenly jumps up and latches on to him in another sloth hug.

"Ren! Don't let Nega-Nora get me! She's scary and talks funny and calls her hammer Mjölnir!" The distraught orange-haired girl sobs into his shoulder.

"I'll be back guys," he finally manages to eke out as the remaining audience begins to file out of the amphitheater, "I'm going to make her some pancakes. You're all invited to come by when I'm done, if that's alright with you, Jaune..."

The white knight, who along with Velvet hadn't said a word since seeing the brawler exit the arena, turns to his teammate and cracks a weak smile before responding.

"Sure, Ren," he replies before turning an uncharacteristically scrupulous gaze on his fellow blonde, "Yang, how exactly are you feeling right now?"

"Headache? Nausea? Dizziness?" Velvet adds softly as well in the soothing tone of an experienced medic.

Yang falls silent for a moment while Ren carries Nora away, playfully teasing his partner saying, "The things I do for love..."

"Uhh, n-no. None of that," the brawler finally responds, her actual condition becoming more evident by the minute, "I feel really... tired. Tough, to move... like if a Goliath were sitting on me..."

Jaune and Velvet trade worried glances, knowing where those symptoms had been seen before. Having experienced that feeling of having lead weights tied to his limbs and eyelids after certain aura-related events, Jaune knew it all too well.

"Ruby, you and your team should get Yang back to your dorm... And feel free to come by to our place after that for a while," he mentions to the crimsonette, and noticing the looks of confusion from her and her teammates adds, "She's going to need her rest. It'll be best if she has the room to herself in the meantime."

It takes a moment, but Ruby, Blake and Weiss each trade glances before finally nodding reluctantly at Jaune's reasonable suggestion and begin making their way with the groups back to their dorms.

As they do so, Yang turns to him and gives him a tired smile before speaking up, "Thanks, Jauney-boy. A girl's gotta get her beauty sleep after all, right?"

The smile he returns is not so convincing, "Right. But Yang, I need you to do me a favor. When you wake up tomorrow, you tell me if anything else happens while you were asleep, alright? Anything _strange_."

Somewhat confused by his strange request, she acquiesces anyway with a nod before entering the dorm building with her team.

* * *

At what point Yang closed her eyes and failed to open them again, she's not sure. She might've gotten to her team's dorm on her feet and she might not have, but it doesn't matter because right now she was feeling awfully comfy, even reminiscent of those easy-going days as a kid growing up in Patch.

The wind howled, whistling between every crevice wide enough to let it through. Crisp and chilly, it rustled between the trees, the smell of wild grass thick in the air...

'Wait. What?'

Yang opened her eyes. Her vision was blocked, half by several blades of grass and half by the jet-black hair in her eyes.

'Weird, I can't imagine ever dying it black. It'd be really hard to dye it blonde again.'

The brawler brought up her hand to move the hair out of her eyes but noticed her arm felt heavy, as if it were made of lead. She drew back in surprise when her hand brushed her face and she noticed Ember Celica still present on her wrists.

'Where am I? Ruby would've taken my gauntlets off once we got to the room. She knows they chafe my wrists if I leave them on overnight...'

But lifing her head, she noticed she was in some sort of meadow, the canopy of evergreens lining the area all around her and the sun up as if it were mid-day.

'Am I in the Emerald Forest? I don't remember the trees being so tall...'

She stood up and realized she was still in her normal gear, but as she began moving out from under the pile she could hear a faint ringing sound in the vicinity, outside and all around her. The sound was quickly becoming more distinct.

"Is that... fighting?"

As she pushed through the final shrubs and greenery at the edge of the clearing, she saw the scene unfolding in front of her in horror.

War.

An entire valley of clashing forces, flashing auras and gunpowder going off in all directions, with beasts of Grimm larger than she had ever learned about and Hunters and Huntresses all around her leaping incredible distances through the air to land crushing blows to the larger enemies. A large amount of them were wielding weapons that reminded her of Starkillers.

Noticing a pile of dead Grimm to her right and a nearby creek in front of her that led into a small pond in the distance to her left, Yang walked over to look into the creek so she could see her reflection. To her surprise, she looked like herself, but at the same time couldn't be more different. Jet-black hair hanging freely like the blonde hair she once had and her eyes still red despite her semblance being inactive at the moment.

'What kind of place _is_ this!?'

She didn't get much of a chance to think, however, as a low growling called her attention just outside the corner of her vision. She turned to see what looked like an Ursa Major, but bigger than any she had seen before.

'No way. Is that even _real? _Oh wait. Duh. That's an Ursa Rex.'

But before she could react, Yang saw a figure in white suddenly flash out from a dense tree-line from her left towards the Ursa, literally slicing it in _half_ with a blade of white energy.

'Whoaaa... that reminds me of that time Jaune went and sliced the- wait a minute.'

She narrowed her eyes at the strangely familiar older man before an equally familiar voice caught her attention from outside her line of sight to the right.

"Cornelius! 'Nelius!"

Finding the source of the voice, Yang gasped as she caught sight of a man in dark grey armor with long curly black hair that he wore tied back... and expressive grey eyes.

"V-_Vin!?_" She cried out, already feeling tears forming in her eyes.

At that moment, she knew this was a dream. Couldn't be anything else. But seeing that it was the first time the brawler who didn't usually dream dreamt about him after The Valean War, she was set on making sure she didn't wake up. Nonetheless, the man in grey armor continued as if never having heard her in the first place.

"C'mon! We have a straight shot to the ruins! Don't stand there like it's the first time you killed an Ursa Rex, I can't make the final run without you 'Nelius!"

She watched Jaune, or Cornelius - whatever - momentarily stand speechless, finally finding the words to say as the man began turning away.

"Hey man, Cornelius is my great-great-gramps!"

The other man didn't seem to hear him either, he had already begun running in the other direction...

'Nah. Can't be Vin. He hears like, _everything_... or at least turns to tell you he heard you...'

Watching the man in white armor put on a white battle hood before following the man in grey, Yang decided to run after the man who looked so much like an older version of Vin as well.

"Hey! Hey you! Mister!~" she called out before reaching him, but to no avail.

'Ugh, I'm not _that_ easy to ignore, sheesh,' she thought to herself in frustration before finally reaching him, but stopped in surprise as her hand simply went _through_ him when she tried to tap his shoulder, 'Ohh... so it's _that_ kind of dream. Lame.'

Settling with the fact that this would be one of those dreams where no one could see or hear her, she continued following the man along with the familiar white knight.

At least, that's what she thought. Turning around a minute or two later, Yang saw that the knight was nowhere to be found at about the same time that the man did. They backtracked for about a minute before hearing Cornelius finishing what sounded like a plea.

Hey!" the panicked knight called out, hoping to appeal to whatever humanity that thing in front of him may still have had, "There's something seriously wrong with you! You need to get help!"

Stopping in front of the knight, the nasty-looking furry humanoid thing with a nastier-looking battle axe with fresh blood on it merely paused for a moment before lifting his axe with an inhuman cry when-

_Zzzzshhhh_

An energy blade in the shape of a broadsword ran through the mutated person's chest who dropped to the floor along with his axe, revealing the grey-armored savior behind the dead person to Cornelius.

"I know, I _know!_ You can thank me later, 'Nelius! Let's _go_."

Resuming his pursuit of the man in dark-grey armor, the rest of the scene played out somewhat quickly to Yang, who focused more on the man who reminded her so much of Vin even when they reached some oddly familiar ruins and a younger Hunter and Huntress came out to meet them.

'Mmm, Vin kinda stands like that,' she mused as she circled the man who had no idea she was there while the team of Hunters had their conversation, eyening every one of his features shamelessly - after all, it _was_ a dream -, 'he kinda talks like that, too. Hmm, if he would've grown up to look like _this_...' the brawler purred involuntarily as her body shuddered in delight.

But then the team is ambushed by Ursae and Beowolves, and in the ensuing fight, Yang lets her somewhat short attention span wander off to bring in her surroundings when a new observation suddenly hits her.

'Heeey, wait just one minute! I know this place!' she begins as she breaks away from the melee around her, 'This is Landfall Ruins! I was right _here._'

She looked down and back up to a large stone where she had remembered setting her first charge that split up Davin and Crudus.

'I set charges _here_, _here_, and _here_...' Yang continued as she now walked through that area of the ruins filled with columns that must've been a covered patio at one point, the rest of the battle forgotten even when a young Huntress with a large battle axe passed by her, before stopping at the center of the patio and looking down at the spot sorrowfully, 'And... and this is where I brought him back...'

She merely looked down at the spot, tears threatening to well in her eyes again before she heard a sudden muffled yelp of a Beowulf and the grey armored man along with his younger teammate rounding the final pillars to reach the source of the sound. Following them, Yang saw the grey-eyed man stopping to contemplate the scene before him with mirth.

"This I tell you, Arc, that you shall always be remembered for this, right here, right now!" The younger Hunter nodded in whole-hearted agreement.

The white knight thrust out his sword in one hand triumphantly as the Huntress stood propping herself up on her second-hand axe just below him on the rocky outcropping, the Beowulf on the floor before them reaching out with its final dying growl.

Yang finally realized that she was looking at the scene that was to become the statue in Beacon's courtyard when she noticed something appear behind Cornelius. Something _large_. Despite it being a dream, she was about to shout a warning but the Huntress was suddenly thrown to the floor, a ghastly set of claws then coming through and out of the white knight's chest.

Yang gasped in dismay as the grey armored man's fury raged from within, his aura flaring out in a black blaze before he cried out.

"NOOO!"

Yang watched him run to the outcrop only to see the shrouded figure appear from the canopy behind the ruins, the most hideous Grimm she had ever seen or could even imagine. Well, almost.

"Heeey, that guy looks like Darovit!" Yang cried out, her anger fueling an eerily similar blaze of black aura around her like the man beside her before she let it die down as she noticed _three_ more arms that came from the creature that tried to stop the grey armored man's advance, "But... Darovit only had _two_ arms..."

She continued watching until she also noticed a very familiar orchid-colored haze beginning to glow around Cornelius. For some reason, the giant Grimm was trying to stash its prize... inside the Trace?

"That's..." the grey-eyed man suddenly began as he noticed the Trace device, his dark aura finally seeping into his eyes, "MINE!"

With his dark telekinesis, he pulled at the Trace device, catching the Grimm off-guard with the unexpected dark ability and grabbing the thin glowing line.

"Whoa wait, Davin was able to do that, too!" Yang cried out, pointing at the man who obviously couldn't hear her, "Okay, I don't think you're Vin, but you two at least have to be _related_ or something!"

Without any response to her, as was expected, he reached _into_ the Trace and pulled it open, unleashing a huge plume of dark energy which coated him and everything around him, including their nearby pair of young teammates that were coated in so much of the substance that their hair began to change color.

One silver. And the other, platinum blonde.

Upon seeing the silver-haired one limping away with his platinum blonde teammate, her torn hoodie hanging down behind her and looking more like a tattered cape, a red flag went off in Yang's mind. Upon seeing the silver-haired one take out his cane to support himself as he hefted his partner's arm around his shoulder to support her as well, her mind erupted in a red flag-a-palooza.

"_Heeeeey! _Those two look _exactly_ like-"

"INTO THE VOID WE GO, CURSED COMMANDER!" the grey-eyed man suddenly shouted, and with a final effort tackled the the beast into the opening taking the impaled Arc with them into the black.

Yang stared in shock at the gaping black hole in the ruins, but shock turned to fear when the dream started having its first physical effect on her.

The black hole was pulling her _in_.

"Whoawhoawhoa," Yang began frantically as she fell, still being dragged closer to the hole and desperately trying to find a grip on the ground as the pull from the opened Trace device became ever stronger, "WWAAAiiiiiit...!"

But it was too late. She was claimed, and the last thing she remembered was the orchid haze surrounding her followed by endless black.

* * *

"Hey."

'Hey?' Yang echoed in her mind. It felt like the first voice she had heard in ages.

Eyes opened, and Yang found herself sitting on the floor with her knees to her chest under a sink in the corner in a small room reminiscent of an infirmary room. Similar, yet different than anything she had ever seen in the most subtle ways. Firstly, and the most obvious, was the room's fairly derelict state. It was clean, somewhat, yet its general state of disrepair was evident. Secondly, there was an unfamiliar unconscious woman on the hospital bed in said room.

But it was the other objects she noticed that disturbed her.

'An IV? What would that be doing in an infirmary? We stopped using those things decades ago when healers figured out how to hydrate patients much easier using aura mixed with ice dust...'

The room, and surely whatever hospital she was in, Yang noticed had been built using wood, much different than the norm of building materials in Vale. But what caused the most curiosity was the dusty technology on the desk beside the unconscious woman. It looked like very old computers, different than anything she had ever seen, and a device beside the bed that had a dial pad like a scroll but looked nothing like a scroll. It was all very confusing.

"Hey, you okay? You look pretty beat up, stranger."

Turning to the source of the voice she had heard earlier, Yang looked up and noticed the third person in the room before looking down and realizing that she herself was wearing hospital scrubs. But that wasn't gonna keep her from launching a decent comeback.

"You're looking pretty shabby yourself," she retorted, wincing as she felt a cut on her cheek, recently sutured.

'Ow. Why isn't my aura healing this?'

However, Yang was right. It seemed like the young man was coming undone. He wore black jeans and a long-sleeve ridged thermal top with the sleeves rolled up, along with brown boots and open-fingered leather gloves that contrasted his makeshift white cloth bindings along his shins and forearms, likely to keep his gear from falling apart. He also wore a large shawl around himself, tattered as it was, and used its long side as a hood that hung low over his head, covering the majority of his face.

"Heh. So you got jokes, huh?" He began again, relaxing as he leaned against the adjacent corner of the room from Yang that was dimly lit by weak lamplight from a table lamp above her, "Fast asleep and still got a sense of humor after waking up. Pretty impressive for a girl that just shoved a guy down an elevator shaft to his death."

Well, _that_ was weird.

"W-What are you talking about?" Yang replied, sure that she would never kill another person in her life, "And w-where am I!?"

Seemingly undaunted by her temper, the young man merely lifted his arms at the room as if presenting a majestic palace, "You didn't know? You're in Grady Memorial Hospital, here in the one and only post-apocalyptic Atlanta, Georgia!"

Yang's mouth hung open for a moment... Remnant didn't have an Atlanta. Or a Georgia. Whatever those things were!

"Alright, crazy person," she stated as she began to put her hands on the floor to pick herself up, "I should've known better than to ask for info from a guy that wears a hood over his face-"

She stops when despite the heavy cloth covering his vision, the young man holds a hand out to halt her motion to stand up, causing her to sit back down in surprise.

"I assure you, though at times my vision may be compromised, my perception is just fine. Besides, I like the dark."

"Oh really?" Yang retorted with a cocked brow, which caused another wince as she realized that she had another cut on her forehead, "Then humor me, O Perceptive One."

"Of course," he began cooly, "I am now certain that you are none other than Beth Greene, separated and kidnapped from your group by the present staff of this here establishment. The same group as that woman lying in that bed... I believe you know her."

Yang didn't know whether to laugh at him of punch him in the face, but chose to do neither as she realized his conviction of the facts was sincere. And she _was _in a dream, after all... so she decided to play along.

"Okaaay, so am I in any danger?"

"Uh, not at the moment. You just pushed the only 'danger' you had down an open elevator shaft a little while ago, like I mentioned. So I think you're fine... aside from the endless hordes of the Turned outside this property's gates. The cockbites."

"The wha?" Yang asks curiously, still somewhat taken aback at the unfamiliar name she was given.

"Oh, _cockbites_," the young man re-iterates with a small smirk barely visible under the edge of his hood, "A few definitions for that. One - a person, place, or thing that is painfully annoying. Two - the uh, the _literal_ definition. Three - any person who does NOT understand this word. And four - your rivals. In this case, the Turned fall under definition number _one_, Beth. Though I'm sure you already knew."

But sensing Yang's glare as she deadpans at him, his smirk fades and he continues.

"Oh... you didn't already know?" He then shuffled his weight a bit as he prepared to explain a piece of the world he rather wouldn't, "The _Turned_... it's a name that only I use for them it seems, but most people know them as 'walkers'... _zombies_, if you will. Most people _would_ chalk up these things and the societal apocalypse they caused as The Walking Dead. But it's not that simple... I know more about them than anyone else here."

"You do?" the brawler prodded, curiosity for some reason impelling her to get more information.

"Yeah. Let's just say I came into this world from Washington DC. The place was overrun by walkers, in contrast to the hopes and dreams that I was later to find that people had of that city and its being a haven from these creatures that were once people, too. Making my way south, I ran into Rick's group. Your group. Told them about Washington and they told me about you. That man Rick Graves, he said he'd let me join the group if I were to use my... skillset... to enter this hospital and ensure your safety before escaping without detection and informing him."

Yang was somewhat confused by the intricacy of this dream.

"Whaaa-?"

"Yep, I know," the young man continued lightly, lifting his hands apologetically, "I recommended snatching you two out of here myself, but he said that your friend here would likely be needing the medical help she was receiving and that if she was still unconscious to simply report back to him so he could set up a trade... two of their members for the two of you. No bloodshed."

"Yeah, okay. But you said you know more about these walkers than anyone else here?" Yang asked, still wondering why this was happening.

The young man paused for a moment, as if debating how up front he should be with this stranger before speaking up, "I know where they came from. People think it was caused by some sort of disease. And in a way, they're right... but this wasn't by any means a 'natural' incident. It was an _attack_, one led by a very twisted Commander that has decimated the population with it. And I fear that if I don't act fast enough, that Commander will do the same to the place where I'm from."

"I thought you said you were from Washington DC..." Yang retorted, to which the young man shuffled his weight again.

"I did say that. But the place I'm _from_... is much further away. It's uh, it's complicated."

"Hmpf," the brawler began, unsatisfied with the response, "Well it looks like you'll be calling the shots now. So after all this is over, where do you plan on taking everybody?"

"To the place I was born," the young man stated coldly.

"Bu-" Yang was going to question him again when he held out a hand to stop her, undoubtedly to continue this part of the conversation on his own terms.

"I was born in a place called Austin, Texas. Close to a fort code-named 'The Teeth of Rooster' which I'm certain is still standing. It'll keep us safe long enough for me to figure out a way to get back to my true home... the place my _father_ was born."

"The far-away place?"

"The far-away place."

The young man sighed dejectedly before concluding, "My father came here a long time ago, by accident, you could say. Long before this whole place went to the gutter. Made a life here, started a family. I thought I'd never remember any of this until I popped up in DC, but now I do... Anyway, that policewoman you helped against the now-dead guy in the shaft, Dawn Lerner, will probably be here any second. I should get going."

He stepped forward to open the door between him and Yang before tilting his head slightly in her direction.

"Oh, and be careful with those scissors you're holding. In a crazy world like this, those things could be the end of you." he finished and was halfway out the door when Yang stood up and called out to him one more time.

"W-Wait! I never got your name!"

Stopping in his tracks, the young man paused, lifted his hand to his hood, and pulled it down. Yang's heart stopped when he turned to reveal those features she had come to know so well - the long wavy black hair, the face that never failed to make her smile, those expressive grey eyes.

A younger version of the grey-armored man she had dreamt of in Landfall Ruins.

"The name's Davin. Davin Arc."

Without another word, he left her in the room and closed the door behind him, the stunned brawler with no strength to keep her standing and sliding down against the wall behind her, back into the seated position in which she had awoken.

Sure enough, a minute or two later the policewoman entered the room, eyeing the girl who looked like she was about to cry.

"Thank you. It's okay to cry."

* * *

The next parts of the dream passed Yang by in what felt like minutes, people talking to her and her responding absent-mindedly as if it were all a pre-written script that she was following through by memory. The unconscious woman woke, conversations were had, and a trade was set up like Davin had said. The woman's name was Carol.

Yang didn't care. She was trying to figure out why Davin hadn't recognized her... that is, until she was given an opportunity to change into her normal clothes before the trade was to be held shortly. Without Ember Celica to protect her, Yang stashed the scissors up her sleeve just in case, and happening to glance into the mirror she noticed that she was looking at a girl somewhat like her, but not herself. This... _Beth_... had blonde hair like hers, pale skin like hers and vivid eyes like hers.

But the wild hair was tied back in a ponytail, the skin was riddled with cuts and bruises that her aura should've healed long ago, and the eyes were blue instead of lilac. And what finally set her off was when she looked down at her scrub top and noticed the nowhere-near-as-pronounced bust as Yang remembered having. Everyone in the hospital heard the shriek that followed.

"WHAT IN MONTY'S NAME HAPPENED TO MY _BOOBS!?_"

* * *

The following events in preparation for the trade also passed in script-like format, Yang wondering how she would ever wake up from this crazy dream... but finally, there she was. The trading point. It seemed like everyone was there in that hospital hallway.

Rick himself, the bearded leader that he was, along with another bearded man who seemed relieved to see her alright. Daryl. Them and every person there armed to the teeth.

Everything seemed to go according to plan until Dawn called for a third return to their group: a kid named Noah. Despite the momentary bickering, Rick decided to return the boy to his previous home... but then those fateful words escaped Dawn's lips, "I knew you'd be back."

Feeling an inexplicable anger rising in her, Yang was sure her eyes turned red as she looked at the woman, growling under her breath, "I get it now."

But Yang didn't notice Davin on Rick's other side, who upon seeing the eyes of the seemingly harmless girl instantly put two and two together.

"Yang? ...Yang, NO! _WAIT!_"

But it was too late. Producing the scissors from her modest sweater sleeve and blinded by some unknown anger, Yang drove it into the policewoman's shoulder. All the brawler saw next was the woman react on instinct, pull a gun to Yang's head, and pull the trigger.

_BLAM!_

* * *

"*_gaaaaasp_*!"

Yang woke up in a hot flash in her dorm. She checked her head, checked her skin, and checked her chest. Sitting up, she grabbed her scroll beside her to check the time.

3:30 AM.

She lay back in bed, only able to stare at the ceiling as a million questions raced through her mind.

Everything seemed back to normal, her teammates fast asleep and nursing tummies full of pancakes. But what was with that dream? Why was she in a war? Why did Jaune say what he did before she passed out? Did he know?

With every question asked, only more arose, many of them with answers that the brawler was sure would stump even the white knight and his apparent knowledge of these things.

'What's Atlanta? Or Washington? Or the RoosterTeeth fort - or Teeth of Rooster, whatever that was?' she turned in her bed before an even larger question struck her mind, '...And did Vin call himself an _Arc!?_'

Whatever this mind game was, Yang had never heard Davin refer to himself as an Arc while he was alive. Another question for Jaune when she got the chance to ask it. But feeling a more restful slumber overcoming her, her body refusing to handle any more stress without a decent rest, Yang's mind drifted back to the image of herself at Landfall Ruins. Once again, her hair was black and her irises red when she entered that dream.

'None of this happened until after I went in Vin's head...'

It was a slow revelation, but a revelation nonetheless, that she had felt something change within herself after exposing her aura to a mix of Davin's and Darovit's when she had rescued the young man from the effects of The Turning.

But just as slowly, a final question crept up in her mind, finally rearing its fearsome head of doubt before Yang drifted off into the realm of unconsciousness.

'But mixing our auras, did it really change something in me... or spark something that was already _there?_'

* * *

"Yang Xiao Long... _The_ Xiao Long..." a voice repeated itself from a silent airship floating above Vale, Beacon Academy visible in the late hour though the enormous windows of the craft.

Three holograms appeared in front of the figure seated at the chair, shrouded in darkness while contemplating the beacon above the clock tower. One hologram glowed purple, the other green, and the final one red.

'_Is it possible that it was only a fluke incident, or previous injury which caused the King Taijitu to falter?_' the figure in the purple hologram offered in explanation with an aged, raspy voice.

"No. I insured that the creatures they captured were unharmed, letting those Atlas fools believe the Grimm were easy prey so as not to use excessive force."

'_And every leader in that poor excuse for an academy believes themselves to be in control..._' the figure in the green hologram added with an especially sinister tone, '_yet YOU were the one who disabled their controls to reveal Xiao Long's power! Pitiful fools, their blood will run first over their beacon of hope before we wipe all trace of their decrepit history from this planet as it should've been generations ago._'

"Now, now," the seated figure continued casually, "you know we couldn't do that at the time, we were so close to finding the Dark one of the Unbalanced and achieving our goal before he ambushed me himself, casting us into the oblivion of the Trace."

'_We tirelessly searched for you across the cosmos for DECADES, Commander..._'

"I know," the figure replied, its fist clenching on its marble armrest, "but in a rather serendipitous turn of events, the Trace returned me here. The fool, he didn't think to seal the device and instead jettisoned himself and I to opposing sectors of the multi-verse. I assume you've all made your return to Remnant."

'_Yes. We followed a particularly negative spike of human emotion and found ourselves in a forest near Vale with a notorious Valean criminal and a notably heinous youth,_' the figure in the purple hologram continued.

"Nothing 'particular' about _that_, Gravid. I assume that if you didn't kill them, there must've been something that made them _different_." the seated figure replied flatly.

'_Oh, but they ARE. Each are united in purpose... hell-bent on exacting revenge against the young male Arc, the Light one of the Unbalanced! For that, we let them go to fulfill their endeavors, as they may be of use in discovering the specific circumstances around Darovit's demise.'_

'_SERVES HIM RIGHT!_' The figure in the green hologram roared, '_For he committed the grievous offense of taking what was rightfully the glory of TYRANUS!_'

"Indeed, dear brother," the ancient Commander calmly replied, "He has served due penance, his life-force extinguished for his act of treason, though not by our hands. I aim to find his executioner myself, even if I must turn this entire cursed planet to darkness in order to do so..."

'_To execute him yourself, of course..._' The figure in the green hologram conceded submissively.

"_No_. You know our way, Venamis. You keep what you kill. Seeing that I have been deprived of a General, our faction code dictates his replacement, and the executioner is always the first candidate for the position..." The shrouded figure then tilts its head toward the figure in the red hologram which up to this moment had remained silent, "Isn't that right, Zannah?"

Zannah merely nodded without saying a word.

_Then our objective remains to seek out the Dark one of the Unbalanced who has become active on this planet, Commander Tyranus?_' General Gravid asked discreetly.

"First and foremost, as it has always been. Then to find Darovit's executioner," the Commander added, its devious true nature hidden under such a serene mask, both in voice and in appearance, "But instinct tells me that our fiery young maiden may have knowledge of the whereabouts of _both_."

'_I never imagined we would find such a rare GEM in this pointless tournament,_' General Venamis continued slowly and with spine-chilling anticipation, '_especially one that was supposed to have been eliminated looong ago... hehe, but here we are. Xiao Long lives..._'

"I agree," the figure in the chair continued cooly, "that this situation was unexpected, and exacts an explanation from the mother. Zannah, I trust you'll find a way to verify this young woman's identity beyond all doubt with your unique... skills... and handle the situation accordingly."

Zannah looked down, only a moment passing before responding, '_Yes, my Commander.'_

"Excellent."

'_We await your orders to attack the wretched academy at once, brother,_' Venamis continued with cruel intent.

"That will not be necessary. We will wait, you and Gravid shall continue building the army, and Zannah will do her work. Once we find the whereabouts of our two targets, we shall strike and exact our revenge on these useless mortals who outed us long ago. And none will feel it more than the Arcs."

'_As you wish, Master and Commander!_' the three holograms declared in unison before ending their transmissions with a _click_.

"After all," the Commander, now alone, states before standing and walking over to the massive window overlooking Beacon with its hands behind its back, "When in war, the scouts come before the flag-bearers."

The large marble room then echoes with the dark sadistic laughter that booms from the shrouded figure. Before retiring to its quarters, it takes a final glance at the Beacon Academy statue in the distance, its pristine grin turning to a murderous scowl.

"The game is on, my old, _old_ friends."

* * *

**A/N: Say it with me, people. RWBY... The Walking Dead... CROSSOVER! :D ahahahaHAHAHAhaha! *_ahem_* I'm sorry. How's that for a "mid-season finale" eh? XD This chapter has been in the works for at least a month now, and now that it's on paper, it _definitely_ shows! _Nearly 11k+ words!?_ Dang. All I can say is that I _really_ hope you guys liked it :) Now, seeing that I've received several reviews already from Blake's chapter and it's only been the second day, I'm just gonna dive right into thank-you notes!**

***SpanishBulldog63: Thank you! And you know what, I keep hearing that from people, too... :)**

***Courtney O'Brien: Thank you! And I intend to. By the way, cool name.**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! And yes, I couldn't have _all_ the main characters win, that'd be too easy ;)**

***joae12: Thank you! I drew a bit from personal experience with a Blake-like friend of mine for that one, so that chapter was definitely an emotional investment on my part... :]**

***Tommy2486: Thank you! And yes, I believe he's pretty epic. And no, not ready to reveal the two OCs that will be intoduced this volume... yet ;)**

***Juju-sama: Thank you! I hope you liked the result! ;) Yang ties for second with Pyrrha in favorite RWBY characters for me. Blake comes first, obviously. Heh :3**

***7Artemis7: Thank you! I really hope you liked it!**

***Warmach1ne32: Thank you! I always appreciate a straight-forward review, and I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! You figured it out, haha! If you look at every one of team RWBY's chapters in this volume, all or part of their matches were modeled after the fight scenes in their respective trailers. For that, Yang totally gave you a shoutout. Hope you liked, heh ;)**

***TheBluePshychoticStrategist: Thank you! And no matter what, I do intend to keep it up. Even if life were to force me to put a pause on writing for a while, I'll be making sure to see this fic through till the end :)**

**Whew! That's a lot of thank you notes! I see why Jimmy Fallon keeps it to a minimum on his late-night show... Anyways, that is all for this chapter. More info will come your way soon so stay tuned! Till then, take care!**

**And as always, Happy Reading!**


	60. VNN SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT (1-10-15)

**_EDIT: AS OF 1-18-15, THE CONTENTS OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT ARE NOW OUTDATED. THE FIC HAS INDEED CONTINUED - AS YOU MAY NOTICE - AND YOU HAVE THE OPYION OF SKIPPING THIS CHAPTER AND NOT LOSING ANY PLOT WHATSOEVER. THE ONLY REASON I'M KEEPING THE ANNOUNCEMENT IS BECAUSE... WELL... I THINK IT'S NICE. SO YOU CAN READ IT IF YOU'D LIKE._**

**_*END OF EDIT*_**

* * *

**A/N: Alright. Firstly, I'm noticing that the site has been acting weird. Whenever I make corrections on a chapter, it marks the fic as 'updated' and makes it look like the chapter has been replaced. I'm actually just working on chapters 1-5 and a few others... sorry if there's any confusion.**

**For everyone else, I can guess what some of you may be thinking right now, 'Another chapter so soon!? YAAAY!~' ...right? Well,**

**Not really.**

**I have an announcement to make, and I **_**would**_** just get on with it in a few short words... but I read that there's a rule stating that I can't us****e a chapter just for a written announcement or news, something I've been noticing **_**several**_** writers making a habit of lately. Shameless Rulebreakers, the whole lot of them. Hehe.**

**So, to make this interesting, I've decided to make this an AR Vale News Network exclusive interview with four main characters from TVW which serves as a theoretical spin-off from my fic. How?**

**Well, like Agent Smith in The Matrix, I'm going to possess a reporter with my mind-hacking author powers and in doing so will be giving the only spoiler alert for Volume 3: Cyril Ian **_**does indeed**_** survive the mysterious attack. His obscure cameraman, Hud, however, doesn't. He dies. Just like in Cloverfield.**

**On with it, then. I can guess you may be thinking I'm canceling the fic by now.**

* * *

_And welcome back to Vale News Nightly, with your host, Cyril Ian!_

* * *

**CI: Hello, and thank you for tuning in to this exclusive VNN interview! I'm Cyril Ian and I'm here with the two main pairings from the growing fic, The Valean War, after the end of their recent mid-season finale, "The Brawler"!**

**Seated on one side of this beautiful office under the Beacon clock tower that Headmaster Ozpin has been so gracious to let us use, I have the growing aura monger Jaune Arc and his magnificent partner, Pyrrha Nikos! On the other, our favorite blonde brawler Yang Xiao Long with a special appearance from Davin Arc! What a treat! Now, I'll be asking six questions, and our first one here is for Davin and Yang, that alright?**

YX: Yeah!

DA: Sounds good.

**CI: Excellent! Question number **_**One**_**, and this one's more for you, Davin. After a fifteen-chapter absence you've now made a reappearance... but in such an admittedly weird way! What gives?**

DA: Ah, that. Yeah, I come back in like a dream inside a dream in Yang's head after her mysterious outburst while facing a pack of Grimm... it's like Inception or something, it's crazy!

**CI: Does that mean you'll be making a return to the fic?**

YX: Oh, kinda like a rebirth maybe? That'd be cool.

DA: Nah, 'rebirth' sounds weird, like Spock reborn in Star Trek-ish territory. Give it an Italian name or something and that might be nicer. But will there be a revival of sorts of my character? Well... that remains to be seen.

Davin grins as Cyril retakes the fore of the conversation.

**CI: Playing the mystery card I see, very well then! Okay, Question number **_**Two**_** goes to our Arkos couple. What on Remnant is the Author's big announcement!?**

JA: Um, you should probably take this one, Pyr. You're better at laying it easy on 'em.

Pyrrha deadpans lightly at Jaune, cracking a small smirk.

PN: Very well. It's unfortunate news; however, the Author would like to let everyone know that like with any mid-season finale, there will be a break from further posted chapters for some time. By no means does this mean that the fic has been or will be cancelled, but the time has come to let it sit for a while so that future chapters retain their quality!

**CI: Well thank you for your eloquently concise explanation, Miss Nikos! Good luck in the Tournament, by the way!**

PN: Thank you, Cyril! ...And, has anyone ever told you that you bear a striking resemblance to the talk show host in the Hunger Games?

**CI: Ceasar Flickerman?**

JA: Oh, yeah! Down to the cerulean hair and super-white teeth...

**CI: Why yes! I view it as a compliment, he's an excellent interviewer! A natural conversationalist as well, so thank you! Now, onto Question number **_**Three**_**. Back to you, Davin and Yang! Any gossip on the reason for this hiatus?**

Yang smirks mischievously as she leans forward.

YX: _Well_, I'm not one to _gossip_... buuut~... I hear that he's taking time off to enjoy the real-life ships! It's like he always says, the real ships take priority over the written ones!~

DA: Can't blame him. At least I got to make an appearance before the mid-season finale!

YX: It wasn't long enough!

DA: What, you wanted me back for a whole day or something?

YX: Well, I sure know what _I_ would do to you if I had a whole day more to spend with ya! ~rrrrrrrrrr~

DA: D-Did you just purr?!

Yang nods as she wraps her arms around the blushing young man and plants a soft peck on his cheek. Jaune and Pyrrha merely trade glances before bursting out in laughter.

JA: Heh, I think Blake's habits are starting to rub off on a certain someone!

**CI: Indeed, it seems that young love has found its way outside the world of The Valean War as well! What can you expect? Well, now that we're on the topic, this provides a rather convenient segway into Question number **_**Four**_** for you both, Jaune and Pyrrha. What are we to expect in terms of **_**your**_** love life in Volume 3 of the fic?**

YX: Ahaha, who's blushing _now_, Jauney-boy!~

Jaune and Pyrrha do indeed blush profusely at the question.

JA: U-U-Um, hehe. I uh, I'm not at liberty to _say_... but Pyrrha and I have always been close and I only see us getting closer in time as the fic goes on. But the Author will be keeping it rated T, and we don't see that changing anytime soon. Cuz... t-that would be _waaay_ too personal to have it out there for people to read!

YX: I see a nosebleed coming on~

JA: OH, C'MON!

YX: Sheesh, I mean from Pyrrha!

PN: Y-YANG!

JA: Ugh... All we can say for sure is that during Volume 3, new ships _will_ set sail. Plural. As in, more than one. So Yang will have _plenty of OTHER_ teasing options to come!

YX: Funny you should mention 'teasing options to come', Jaune~ Especially from the pairing that actually _shares_ a dorm room... you guys started sharing beds yet, too?~

JA/PN: _DARN IT, YANG!_

DA: Alright, Yang, they've had enough punishment. Poor Pyrrha really _is_ about to spring a leak~

JA: Wait... wha-?

Pyrrha quickly looks down with a deep blush, crossing arms and legs on her stool.

PN: *_mumbles angrily to herself_*

**CI: Hah! You couples are **_**adorable!**_** We do look forward to seeing more as the fic progresses with its diverse cast! Speaking of which, this begs the question of another matter that will be affected by this hiatus. Question number **_**Five**_** for you, Davin and Yang. What of the open OC slots that the Author has been accepting submissions for?**

YX: Well, there's- Mmf!

Davin quickly covers Yang's mouth with his hand, lowering it as she narrows her eyes at him and he speaks up.

DA: Nope. You've been benched. You've caused enough trouble for one interview.

YX: Awww no fair! I've done worse in other chapters! Besides, Jaune and Pyrrha share beds in _lots_ of other writers' fics, and it's just for fluff!

JA: True...

DA: Then I'll tell you what. If I do come back, I promise to share beds with you at least once if you promise to-

YX: _Deal!_

Yang grins adorably at Davin who can't help a small smirk at her antics.

DA: Uh... right then. That solves _that_. Anyways, at this point there are about two dozen submissions vying for four open slots. It's hectic. So, the Author will be taking his time to roll each submission over in his mind to gauge for depth of character, literary appeal, and compatibility with the characters they'll possibly be teamed up with. Submissions will still be open during hiatus.

**CI: That's good to hear, especially for those who have made submissions already! Any word on the selection process?**

DA: Sure, that shouldn't be a problem to say. There will be two selection rounds. Each one testing the OC makers with a personality question that they must answer while in-character for their respective OCs. The question will be the same for everyone, one question for the first round, and one for the final round.

The uh, the questions themselves have absolutely nothing to do with anything in the fic - to eliminate any bias or pull that the OC maker may have for where they want their OC to be - and the answers to said questions will narrow down the field to the final four OCs. The selected OCs' creators will be notified by PM before the end of Volume 2.

YX: Don't forget the two that have been already selected...

DA: Oh, right. There were originally six open slots but two have been filled; each of them will be introduced by end of Volume 2. They are the only two entrants in the Tournament from Atlas' Hunter Academy, and one of them has even already been named!

**CI: Well that'll be a nice Easter egg hunt for the fic readers that didn't catch the name yet! Thank you for the inside info, Davin! Now for Question number **_**Six**_**, Jaune and Pyrrha. As two canon characters in the animated series, RWBY, what can you tell us about the upcoming Volume 3 of the show in 2015?**

PN: Not much, I'm afraid. The ways of the Great Monty are truly unknowable at this point!

**CI: That's sad news! What of the other directors of the show perhaps, such as Miles Luna?**

JA: ACHOO!

PN: I'm sorry, who? I couldn't hear...

**CI: Miles Luna?**

JA: ACHOO!

PN: ...Erm, Jaune, are you alright?

Jaune sniffles loudly before speaking up.

JA: Uh, yeah. I'm okay. Not sure what came over me...

**CI: That's alright, I'm sure time will tell as the tale of RWBY unravels in the World Wide Web! But this leaves us time for one more bonus question, free for whoever is willing to answer. Question number **_**Seven**_**... let's be honest here: as is the case with many hiatus-takers, a temporary hiatus can turn into a permanent one. Is there any chance this may happen to The Valean War?**

JA: Hmm...

PN: Uh...

DA: It's okay guys, I got this...

Davin turns to set his gaze in the distance, almost as if looking right at the reader while Yang takes his arm in hers with a small smile.

DA: I don't make many promises, and neither does the Author. But I believe I speak for him when I say that this isn't the end. It may take a week, it may take a month, but if you're willing to wait - and heck, leave a follow while you're at it - then we'll be back.

He then turns to face Yang with a small smile of his own.

DA: Besides, I did make a promise to a Little Sun Dragon that I'd be back as well, and if I'm alive - wherever I may be - I intend to do everything in my power to keep it. That's something I think the Author would pick his iPad up for again.

Yang grins and wraps Davin in a tight embrace while Pyrrha sighs happily and rests her head on Jaune's shoulder, the Arkos duo trading warm smiles in their momentary glance at each other.

**CI: Ah, a touching moment from our two main pairings! I love my job! Well, that's all the time we have in this edition of Vale News Nightly, and we thank you for tuning in! Back to you, Anderson Cooper!**

* * *

**A/N: So yeah... Anderson Cooper took over VNN after Lisa Lavender disappeared. Makes total sense. Anyways, that's what I wanted to say, and I hope you guys don't mind... As many of you know, I've been at this fic for quite literally three months straight, and aside from one or two instances where I took a long weekend to sharpen the saw, it's been pretty much non-stop!**

**So yeah, everything written is 100% true, and I'll be taking a break for a while. You can expect one more update to my other fic, RWBY: Switched!, by the end of the month, and I'll be going radio-silent soon after. FFnet has been fun, but you know what they say, too much of a good thing isn't such a good thing blah blah blah. And sorry about the January incident :(**

**In any case, I'd like to thank you all for your continued support and time, especially those who have kept up with my fic through the beginning and even through the time in October when my fic was almost lost after my email account was compromised :/ Long story. But I'm pausing my work on good terms and I hope to come back to it with time on equally good terms, so stay tuned for the next chapter, The Kickoff!**

**EDIT: And okay, I'll give another spoiler alert for the matches to begin with the Entrant vs. Entrant part of the Tourney next chapter... The **_**two**_** matches to be featured in "The Kickoff" will be **_**Pyrrha Nikos vs. Viktor Ylvis **_**(what does the fox say, anyone?) and **_**Jaune Arc vs. Nora Valkyrie! **_**The chapters will be longer, the battles intense, and the results outstanding! So with that, I'll take my leave and be back later!**

**And as always, dear readers, Happy Reading!**


	61. Vol 2-15: The Kickoff

**A/N: Ayyyyy-YEP! I'm back on the Chronicle train! It's certainly been a while - three weeks maybe - but I'm back and hoping to get this fic back on the road! Though I am kinda sad that the fic hasn't gotten much love since coming back from the dead :( I hope we can change that!**

**Always remember, you can fave and follow to keep up with coming chapters and all that jazz, including reviews on what you think about the story so far! ;)**

**Anyway, you're reading this for the story, not my lame author's note, so let's get this thing rolling! Chapter 15 starts now!**

* * *

_**The Kickoff**_

* * *

It was a new day.

A new hum, a new crowd, a new charge. And you could _feel_ the excitement saturating the air, surrounding the very streets of Vale as people came in droves to the Beacon amphitheater to witness the 'true' commencement of the Vytal Tournament: Contestant vs. Contestant.

As people began to file into the seats around the arena, so did the students, and there was no shortage of anticipation for the first two matches of the main segent of the tournament - Jaune Arc the wildcard against Nora Valkyrie the hammer-wielder, followed by the famous and beautiful Pyrrha Nikos against the elusive Viktor Ylvis.

And as teams JNPR, RWBY and VNDS bid their friends due for competition good luck, it was Neptune who had a final word to share with the knight.

"Hey Jaune, you got a sec?" The blue-haired weapons expert began as he tugged the blonde's sleeve.

"Yeah, what's up, man?"

"Look," Neptune states in a low tone, "you gave me great advice once, and I took it... Now it's time for me to return the favor..."

Jaune took a look at his friend's enigmatic expression and couldn't help raising his brow as he replied, "Okayyy..."

"You see, I know you've got that weird copy machine ability for a semblance, and I know you might be thinking about using it against Nora... but this is where I advise you _not_ to do that, at least in her case. Like, _ever_..."

"Well firstly, I'm not sure I can copy someone's semblance that I've never seen before - just a hunch, really - and even if I could, why wouldn't I wanna do that in Nora's case?"

At Jaune's mildly unworried response, Neptune shuffled himself a bit closer, measuring his words as if to reveal one of the universe's greatest secrets.

"Jaune, you're a good guy. But you haven't been around like I have or seen the people I have. For example, back at Haven I used to have this teammate, Scarlet. Don't even get me started on her. Point is this: don't stick your aura in crazy. _NEVER_ stick your aura in crazy!"

The blonde knight merely looked into Neptune's genuinely concerned eyes before nodding absent-mindedly, "Uhh... alright."

And with a sigh of relief, Neptune stood up straight and patted Jaune on the shoulder, stating before leaving, "Cool beans. Nice talk, bro! And good luck!"

'Well... _that_ wasn't weird...' Jaune thought to himself before turning to see the rest of his team conversing over an equally weird subject. Pyrrha was the one to notice his confusion and walk over first.

"Hey, Jaune," she approached softly while gently taking his hand in hers, an action which was nearly second-nature to her by now whenever with him, "It seems Nora is a bit... unwilling... to face you in a match."

Turning to his other two teammates, Jaune's eyebrows shot up at the scene: Ren putting more effort than Jaune could remember him ever having put into anything other than training, trying to get Nora out of a seated position in the corner. But no matter what he seemed to be saying, she would just hold onto her knees and shake her head vehemently with a stern expression on her face.

"No! ... No no no! ... He's our leader, Renny! ... I'll fight anyone but him, tell them to bring the Grimm again or something! ... But what if I break his legs on accident!" She would reply firmly between his quiet pleas.

"Oh," Jaune replied as he got the gist of the conversation.

"Yeah," Pyrrha added, "Maybe you should go talk to her."

Nodding to his partner, he walked over to Nora with his best impression of a smile on his features.

"Hey Nor, wassa matter?"

"Jauney!" Nora complained with a pout, "They want us to fight! I don't want us to fight! Fighting our teammates is _mean!_"

Considering his options, Jaune quickly thought up a plan he believed would service the situation best.

"Well Nor, it doesn't have to be mean! Why don't we make this interesting, like a game!" He exclaimed, his smile much more genuine as the idea began budding in his mind.

"Wha-Whaddaya mean, Jaune?" She asked mousily.

"Mmm, like a bet. If I win, you have to wash _all_ the dishes tonight for the team after dinner. By yourself," he adds, to which she lets out a groan of disapproval, "But if _you_ win, I'll personally make you your most favorite pancakes ever!"

Her face makes a complete 180, visibly brightening up at the prospect, "Peanut Butter n' Jelly pancakes?!"

"Yep!"

"With extra syrup!?~" she adds with unrestrainable mirth.

"With extra syrup."

And squeeing in delight, she hops up into standing position and mightily shakes Jaune's hand with joy, "You have a _deal_, Mister Fearless Leader!~"

As the blonde knight watches her skip away to ready her fearsome weapon, he's made aware of Ren's presence beside him by the stoic's words of checked concern.

"You _do_ realize what you've done, right?"

"Dandelions," Jaune replies flatly, eliciting a confused glance from his teammate.

"_Dandelions_," The blonde knight continues in explication, "I'd like dandelions for when I wake up in the hospital room from the coma she'll probably put me in."

Holding back a smirk, Ren merely nods before turning and leaving with Pyrrha to their seats as General Ironwood's voice calls out over the loudspeakers.

_For our first match today, we invite to the arena Jaune Arc and Nora Valkyrie._

Passing into the arena lights together along with the fanfare, Jaune shielded his eyes as Nora beside him waved at the crowd. Specifically, Ren, who she always seemed to have a knack for finding rather quickly even in multitudes of faces.

_For today's first match, we have Jaune Arc versus Nora Valkyrie,_ Ironwood declared through the arena loudspeakers, _This will be judged by Classic Tournament rules - first contestant whose aura drops to the red is eliminated. Are you both ready?_

Each of them nodded in assent, trading a brief smile before taking their places on opposite ends of the arena.

_Excellent, the match will begin at the starting signal._

Making his way back up to the seats as the two students readied their weapons, he let out an aside to his silver-haired colleague, "This won't take long."

"Oh?" Ozpin mused aloud with a half-interested tone as he watched Jaune intently.

"Well, with these high-powered contestants, it's like one of those arm-wrestling matches. They never last long. You remember _our_ matches, don't you old friend?" James explained, making the final query with a small smirk.

"Ah, yes, I recall you had quite the affinity for those," the Headmaster replied coolly.

"Hmpf. Yes he did, as with any contest involved with masculine bravado," Glynda added gruffly, eliciting a self-satisfied chuckle from the General.

But before he could respond, they were interrupted by the match signal.

_Beep_.

"Ready, Nor?" Jaune now asked with an anticipatory grin.

"I'll have my pancakes topped with strawberries this time, Jauney," she replied with an equally amused wink before charging with Magnihild at the ready.

_BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!_

Three heart-grenades made very explosive contact against Jaune's shield, and even though he was able to manage to hold firm under each one as he charged his teammate, he was wholly unprepared for the massive hammer-head coming his way that made impact with his side at impossible speeds.

"Oh!" Ruby cried out in the stands next to Pyrrha as Jaune rolled halfway across the arena under what should've been a one-hit KO, "That's gotta hurt!"

"I'm surprised he wasn't eliminated..." Blake added with a fair measure of incredulity.

Pyrrha couldn't help a smirk as she responded, "He's got more aura than any of us. It'll take a lot more than _that_ to defeat him."

In the arena, Nora was surprised to see Jaune even _moving_ after her quick combo... yet despite his difficulty in doing so, there he was, trying to get up. Dashing forward to finish him with a hammer-strike to his back - at half power, so the bruising wouldn't be so severe - she gasped as her weapon went _through_ him and slammed the floor with considerable force.

"J-Jaune, did I kill you!?" Nora cried out with worry, "Was that your ghost!?"

"Nope," a voice suddenly called her attention to her side, revealing the smug blonde to be intact, "Aura-clone."

"YAH!" Nora grunted as she immediately swung the hammer at him, only for the same effect to be had before being confronted by another one. And another one. And another one.

_Fizz, fizz, fizz..._

One aura-clone after another kept falling to her insanely fast hammer-strikes from her sides, from in front of her, and from above until she finally found herself in a reprieve without constant attack.

"There are so many of you Jaunes!" She exclaimed as she wiped the beginnings of sweat off her brow, "I shall now call you Jaune-Jaune in case I get the wrong one the first time! Jaune-Jaune, where are you!?"

And suddenly feeling a presence inches away, a chill ran down her spine as the real Jaune executed his best impression of Batman right behind her.

"_HERE_."

But what Jaune didn't expect was the swift backwards jab he promptly received in his abdomen from the butt of Magnihild followed by an upwards elbow-strike to the chin, dazing him long enough to receive a stern rebuke from the hammer maiden.

"You _know_ how scared I am of that movie!"

This action, of course, was followed by her hefting her grenade-launcher sideways and literally firing herself backwards onto him, the sheer force from the recoil carrying both students clear across the arena into the arena wall and effectively completing a brutally devastating horizontal elbow drop on the poor blonde who dared to creep her out with a Christian Bale voice.

Slightly winded, Jaune had barely enough time to collect himself and duck under a hammer-strike aimed at his head before coming out of the crater in the wall.

Everyone was surprised enough to see he had somehow kept his weapons during the whole ordeal, but it was nothing to the shock they felt when they suddenly saw him _sheath_ his weapon and sword and prepare to engage Nora bare-handed.

"Did that hit scramble his brains!?" Weiss practically shrieked from the stands, "She'll kill him in there!"

But Pyrrha knew better as she noticed his aura coalescing around his hands.

'He has learned well', she now thought to herself with a tinge of pride at having seen the tactician she had helped groom to be an admirable fighter. Having seen Nora's early indications of fatigue at her continuous attempts to weed out the real Jaune from his clones, she knew he had seen it as well.

Jaune was gonna tire her out.

And sure enough, the crowd started moving closer and closer to the edges of their seats as Nora engaged Jaune with swing after swing of her mighty hammer, surprised exclamations beginning to rise all around at how Jaune was suddenly able to dodge, duck, spin around, or redirect every single close-range attack with his bare hands.

Pyrrha's smile was growing ever wider as she was seeing a copy of her very own semblance in action. What she _didn't_ notice, however, was the increasing amount of precipitation slowly coalescing around the knight while he dodged each hammer-swing by mere inches, nor what he did to the weapon when he put both hands on it briefly as Nora stopped to regain her balance.

"Whaaa... I'm so dizzy~" she slowly admitted with a slight slur as she took a moment to pause, only to notice Jaune standing a few feet in front of her while flexing his arms in contemplation.

"Hey Nor, do you think they'll let me play Thor in the next Avengers movie?"

Now, if Nora would've had a semblance remotely similar to Yang's, this would've been the moment of its activation, as her face now steeled with an expression of disbelief and something even akin to rage as she transformed her weapon once more to grenade-launcher form and aimed at the smug blonde.

"That's my dream role, Jaune-Jaune. You _know_ I've always wanted to play Thor!"

And aiming her weapon in her anger, she didn't notice that Jaune had frozen the entire shaft of the launcher solid until it was too late.

_BOO-BLAM!_

The grenade misfiring on the block of ice covering the shaft, the lethal weapon became its own worst enemy, the explosive going off mere inches from the wielder and instantly dropping her aura to the red.

In the aftermath, as Nora sat up from the floor and shook herself off while General Ironwood reappeared on the platform, she saw a hand reach out to her to help her up. Taking it, she looked into the visage of a very apologetic knight before finally sighing with a smile.

"Well played, Mister Fearless Leader~ Well played."

_And the match winner is Jaune Arc. Congratulations, young man!_ The General declared with a lingering glance on the young Hunter-in-training as the knight bowed to the fanfare.

Then walking up to Nora, Jaune leaned in towards her as they each exited the arena, "And don't worry about the dishes, I already washed them this morning and we've got plenty of disposable ones for dinner. And you know what, with all this fighting, now _I've_ got a hankering for some PBnJ pancakes... You up for some later?"

At this, Nora turned to him with a beaming smile and hopped onto him to give him a hug from behind, "Aw thanks, Jauney! You're the best!~"

"Yeah, yeah, just don't go calling me 'Nora's Arc' for being your chef this time," he then mentioned with a chuckle, "Because this time around, I'm pretty sure I'm Pyrrha's Arc now!"

"You got that right!" They each turned to see the Spartan waiting at the arena exit with a wide grin, the content Valkyrie hopping off her leader right before the redhead met him with a congratulatory kiss, "Good eye out there, love!"

"Thanks to your training, Pyr!" He replied with his goofy smile, "But I don't think you're going anywhere since you're next, so good luck!"

And with just enough time to leave her with another short kiss, the rest of team JNPR headed back to their seats as Pyrrha heard the next announcement.

_Up next, we have Pyrrha Nikos versus Viktor Ylvis, who we now invite to the arena!_

Walking out into the center of the arena, Pyrrha took in the applause she had grown accustomed to all those years ago as she noticed her second-year opponent appear from the other side of the arena to join her.

_Once again, this match will be judged by Classic Tournament rules - first contestant whose aura drops to the red is eliminated. Are you both ready?_

Each Beacon student nodded to the General in the arena with a confident "yes" before he continued.

_Excellent, let's begin._

And exiting the platform to reappear in his seat above, the Atlesian Leader watched intently beside his two colleagues as each contestant now brandished their weapons - Pyrrha with her famous bronze spear and shield, and Viktor with his formidable energy sword, Aegis, which uncurled to full length in front of him. It was a sight that made the seasoned veteran watching from above imperceptibly twitch.

Twirling it around himself a few times, leaving a glowing bright red trail of energy from the edge of the massive blade infused with his own aura, Viktor smirked and spoke up to his soon-to-be opponent.

"You know, Miss Nikos, I have to admit I've always been a fan. Watched most of your tournaments on TV - and even based a character off of you in my more popular fics," he mentioned with an enigmatic grin, "_but_, there's something I've always wanted to tell you..."

Having paused while centering his sword and putting on his distinctive red headphones, both fighter and weapon now facing their opponent, Pyrrha couldn't help cocking her head to her side and taking the bait.

"What?"

_Beep_.

And without even a second's time, instead of an answer she was met with a ghostly apparition of her opponent looming over her with weapon strike already on its way, quickly being met with its physical form from dozens of feet away to complete the strike which was now barely blocked by her shield.

Nearly gasping at the unexpected speed of attack, Pyrrha nevertheless kept managing to put up an excellent defense around her unpredictable fox-faunus opponent and his aura that stretched around her in flashing speeds and countless directions - some flashes merely aural feints, and others met with the sudden physical blow from the Hunter-in-training himself.

But if she didn't know any better, she'd say that she was fighting a fully-accredited Hunter in his own right, his style pristine and unwilling to offer many openings for her to exploit. Aside from his muttering under his breath of the lyrics to the song he was listening to.

"Here we go again~ We're sick like animals, we play pre-tend~ You're just a cannibal and III'm afraaiid I wooon't get o-out a-liiive~"

Instantly recognizing the song as one that never failed to remind her of Jaune, Pyrrha was now able to figure out the timing of his attacks and finally began pushing him back with subsequent pushes and blows with Akoúo and Miló.

This of course, before a glint passed over his eye.

"Ah yes, almost forgot to answer your question, Miss Nikos..."

And delivering a flurry of sword-slashes that she was barely able to deflect with her sword-version of her weapon and shield - along with a little help from her semblance - she was expecting to deflect the final downward slash of his combo to her face when instead, he turned his blow away himself, leaving what would've been a nasty blow through her defenses cut short.

And also leaving a small, pulsing red orb floating inches from her face.

"...those little red orbs of mine ain't metallic."

The image of the one he'd sent through the Emerald Forest mere minutes before the beginning of the Valean War that leveled hundreds of trees in a single fireball as a flash bomb passed through her mind as her opponent spirited himself away.

"Oh-"

BOOOM!

The entire arena stood still for a single stunned moment in silence as the fireball faded, the sly fox-faunus taking no chances and waiting on the other side of the arena with Aegis brandished and expecting either a subsequent counter-attack or the end of the match.

But under a smoldering bronze shield still glowing red with the heat over the melted floor around her, Pyrrha slowly stood up almost unscathed. Almost.

The audience gasped in unison, a few members even fainting, as they looked at her aura levels on the giant banners which bore their names above the arena. The dip in the level indeed confirmed that Pyrrha Nikos... the invincible, untouchable Full Metal Huntress... had just taken a hit.

Though it was still in the green, not once in four years of arduous tournament dueling had anyone managed to get so much as a sliver out of her aura. Until today.

"That's quite a thing to say, Mister Ylvis," she conceded softly, knowing full well that he had studied her long enough before this match to realize what her semblance was, "But I must admit I have no idea what you're talking about..."

He returned her knowing smirk as the two cunning duelers re-engaged.

To the audience, including her very own team, it seemed that the Invincible Girl may have finally met her match - each attack being met blow for blow, each bullet failing to hit its phantasmal target and each deflection seeming more and more difficult to maintain - but they couldn't see what she could.

She smirked as she realized that she literally needed to get him out of his groove to gain the upper hand.

So deflecting another combo with her shield, she let the final blow bring her down to a crouch, her shield holding the glowing red tip of Aegis at bay. But instead of slashing it away with Miló in sword form, Viktor had no time to react when Phrrha instead came out from behind her shield with her weapon in gun form and shot a single bullet straight at the top of his head, breaking his headphones in two.

"Hey!" He cried out as he watched both pieces fall, "Those were the Bluetooth wireless edition! They cost me five hundred lien!"

"Terrible investment. They bleed the sound and reveal the timing of your attacks," she advised complacently before spinning around with harrowing speed and unleashing a barrage of strikes with both her weapons in tandem, taking a serious chunk out of his aura in the process.

Being caught off-guard by the ferocity of the attack and the loud noises of metal against metal around him, Viktor then tried to reposition himself by casting his semblance through the air, his aural spectre stretching through the air to Phrrha's other side in the blink of an eye. But finally having figured him out, Pyrrha turned and waited to see exaculy _where_ the phantasm ceased motion a few yards away from her.

"Without the music, let's see what the fox says..." She grumbled to herself in satisfaction as an idea struck her which could grant her victory.

And instead of trying to keep up with his physical form, she timed a discus-like throw of her shield right at the phantasm's head as his body caught up with his aura, his face momentarily registering the danger and utterly unable to change a thing before body and shield met aura at the same time with a very loud _GONG_ that echoed through the arena.

Viktor Ylvis was out cold.

Picking up her shield, she stood over his slowly recovering form as Ironwood appeared on the platform to call the match and shook her head, "...Not much, it appears."

'_Hah!_' an electronic voice suddenly blared in her ear, startling the Spartan, '_You know we could bloody hear that, right? That was tops right there!_'

Cipher.

'_We heard all of it, really,_' Ren now added with a touch of mirth in his tone, '_and that was actually pretty funny, Pyrrha..._'

"Erm... s-sorry," she mutters apologetically, "just some light banter I couldn't keep to myself..."

'_So now we know what really goes through your head during a match, hehe_' Jaune prods teasingly, '_You never told me about the habit, sweetie!_'

"It's an _acquired_ habit from association, I assure you," she retorts flatly.

'_Awww!_' '_Pffft!_' '_C'monnn!_' a string of exclamations of false innocence from Sun and Neptune promptly flood the earpiece.

_And the match winner is Pyrrha Nikos. Congratulations, young lady!_

And picking up her now slightly woozy opponent, Pyrrha listened as Viktor spoke up with a hint of dizziness in his voice, "I guess that was fair - I figured out your semblance, you figured out mine. At least it's better than the last time I lost... Being stabbed in the gut and left for dead in the forest, you know it goes..."

She did. She was there when they found him. And she knew full well that his team had been lost to the war, so she reassured him with a hand on his shoulder, "But that's why we train. Always something new to learn and always room to improve, and I know you'll do well!"

But now donning an excellent poker face, she cocked her head to the side with the full picture of innocence as the two walked out the arena grounds, "But about the whole semblance remark... I still have no idea what you're talking about."

He chuckled to himself before responding, "Right. But just to let you know, there won't be anymore training for me. I'm going to inform Ozpin of my decision at the end of the tournament."

Pyrrha could only stand slightly agape at him now outside the arena and in the hallway as teams RWBY, JNPR and VNDS joined the pair with the Dorme fighters, finally finding the right question to ask.

"Why?"

"Why?" He echoed, looking around at her friends before returning his gaze to her, "Because I believe the best way I can live for my team is beginning a life they never got to live, just like you live for your team in your purpose to become Hunters. But I don't have that anymore, and I honestly doubt I ever will in a team again."

He sighed with deep emotion, looking down before continuing, "Coco would've wanted us to open a coffee shop in Vale, Yats would've wanted me to keep writing, and as for my cousin... well, Fox would've wanted me to keep seeing the sights he was never able to enjoy for himself. So that's what I'll do."

And to their surprise, it was Velvet who now came to offer him a kind embrace, one of his fellow second-years and among his first friends at Beacon as a fellow Faunus as well.

"It's alright, Viktor. You did what you could and they'd back you up no matter what you chose after everything that happened."

"I know," he replied as he wiped a single tear from his eye before turning back to Pyrrha, "but it was an honor to fight my final match against you, Pyrrha Nikos. And if the fates will allow, I'll do my utmost to immortalize your triumphs in writing. All of your triumphs," he concluded with a sweeping glance over everyone standing with them.

"Good luck, friend," Velvet then said sweetly before he turned and began walking away.

* * *

"It's a burden he'll have to carry his entire life. An ex-leader of a team, wondering why he survived instead of his teammates... It must be incredibly difficult," Blake finally mentioned a few minutes later, a recess having been declared in the amphitheater before the next two matches.

"It only makes sense to remove himself from the memory of it all, going back to civilian life to live for what his best friends couldn't..." May offered as well after having remained silent for some time.

"Well," Weiss added with a nearly imperceptible shudder, "I can certainly see how matches and future missions could revive those memories; like you said Blake, a burden indeed."

It was a somber mood at the community tables outside the amphitheater, and at this point Ruby finally decided to try and change the subject lest anyone carry their heavy emotions with them into the arena. And more than anyone, she certainly didn't want her partner to be compromised as well. She cared for her too much for that.

"Well uh, speaking of matches, the next two should be coming up soon, right? Anyone know who will be in them?"

And after an entire morning of distant silence, it's Yang who absent-mindedly picks up her scroll and checks the entrant list, eyes finally widening a bit as the requested info was found.

"It's... you and me next, Rubes..."

"Like, _against_ each other?" The crimsonette asked with surprise, the mood now slowly turning to eager anticipation at the tables.

"No," the brawler responded with her air of surprise still present, "but we're going to be facing another pair of sisters...a pair I actually fought against a while back..."

She then looked at Neptune, whose features suddenly morphed into a similar one as hers when their identity dawned on him after Yang's final hint.

"Twins."

* * *

**A/N: Yeah... If I had a team and they died, I might just do the same thing. It wasn't what I originally had planned for Viktor, but after reading a similar experience from an OC named Clint Eastwood in another RWBY fic, it only made sense. I hope you guys liked it! And I bet y'all know who the twins are now, right? :D**

**Just so you know, OC submissions are still being accepted, but the first round of deciding questions for those whose OCs are receiving further consideration will be going out sometime next week! Yay!**

**And as always, review to let me know what you think and leave a fave and follow if you wanna stay tuned for more or just to show your support! I mean, in all RWBY fics published in the last six months, _Chronicle_ ranks as #14 on the very first page, which is awesome! And I know that if this fic hadn't been deleted (twice) it'd have around 120-140 followers, so I know you guys are still out there heh :) so feel free to show Chronicle some love ;)**

**Anyway, I'll be trying to go back and forth between this fic and _Jaune Arc: The Force Unleashed_, and will be updating my other fics intermittently when I need a dose of humor to counteract all the drama hah!**

**Oh, and the song is Animals by The Neon Trees. I put my master Soundcloud playlist on shuffle and decided the first song that played would be the one Viktor is listening to... so yeah. Meh. **

**So as always, take care!**

**And Happy Reading!**


	62. Vol 2-16: The Twins

**A/N: Hello! Did you miss me? No? Aw how rude... :/ Ehe I'm still trying to work out a balance between my fics and my new profile at the RT site, but seeing that I've left FFnet for so long and hadn't written anything in a week... I clearly still have to work on that balance! In any case, I'll be focusing a bit more on writing in these coming days :)**

**And Chapter 16 starts now!**

* * *

**_The Twins_**

* * *

"And remember, she's got like these claw thingies that she's really good at using and will swipe at you if you give her an opening! And-"

"_Yang!_ ...Yang," Ruby cried out, easing down on her second attempt with a smile so as not to hurt her sister's feelings as she nearly smothered her with advice, "I got it... you don't have to worry!"

"But Rubes, I just want to make sure you-"

"_Know your opponent as well as you can!_" Ruby completed the sentence with a mocking tone, jutting out her smaller bust in an attempt to imitate her well-endowed sister, "I know, Yang! Hah, but remember, 'It's not about knowing your enemy'..."

Yang looked down for a moment, her amused smile at her sister's antics fading a bit as she now finished the saying, "...'It's about knowing _yourself_.' I know, Davin used to say that..."

"You know, I think Ren says it too," Ruby added frankly with a small grin, a hand now on her older sister's shoulder to keep her from falling back into her own dark cloud of thought.

"Meh, Vin would say it better though!" Yang replied cheerily with a shrug, relief briefly rushing through the crimsonette as she was reassured that her choice of words didn't bring the blonde brawler too far down.

'But still,' Ruby thought to herself as she gave her sister a final hug and pulled back while checking her face for any negative signs, 'She may be smiling, but her eyes aren't...'

She knew her sister well, but Ruby was unable to do much about Yang's current emotional situation before being interrupted by Ozpin's voice on the loudspeaker.

_For our following match today, we invite to the arena Ruby Rose... and Miltiades Malachite._

"Showtime!~" Yang teased as she ruffled Ruby's hair, much to the red leader's chagrin, before lightly directing her to the arena entrance, "And remember to watch out for those claws!"

Ruby turned around to give her a thumbs up before walking into the arena.

Passing into the arena lights together along with the fanfare, Ruby shielded her eyes as they got used to the stronger lighting and tried to find her opponent in the arena. And soon enough, she saw her.

"Whoa."

"Whoa," Weiss unknowingly echoed above in the stands as Yang rejoined her team in the seats above, "They look oddly... _similar_."

"Eheh, two-for-one, Weissy-chan~ Is it getting your blood goin' yet?" Yang teased with an ear-splitting grin.

"Shut up, Xiao Long," Weiss warned as she deadpanned, fixing an icy glare on the brawler, "You've been reading too many fics again."

Blake then cut in seamlessly, "I think if anyone's pleasantly confused right now, it's Seul over there..."

The two girls followed Blake's gaze to the silent Dorme fighter below beside his crazy-haired partner and younger Arc and noticed that he indeed _was_ intently focusing on the two girls as the match preparation continued.

_For the next match, we have Ruby Rose versus Miltiades Malachite,_ Ozpin announced through the arena loudspeakers, _This will be judged by Classic Tournament rules - first contestant whose aura drops to the red is eliminated. Are you both ready?_

Each of them nodded in assent before taking their places on opposite ends of the arena.

_Excellent, the match will begin at the starting signal._

Yang turned back to see Blake still glaring at Seul, and not at all in a friendly way.

"Did you guys... know each other before all this?" The brawler asked cautiously as she observed the smallest of scowls threatening to twist the otherwise stoic girl's features.

Blake's only response was to turn to the arena and watch the two red-themed girls like everyone else with a sharp sigh.

"Blake, if there was ever animosity between the both of you, wouldn't you think it best that you go talk to him about it?" Weiss questioned with concern, earning herself a scoff from the raven-haired girl.

"_You're_ one to talk..."

"_Hey_," Yang now intervened with a much firmer tone than before, a change which definitely caught Blake's attention, "If Weiss was able to manage that with _you_, don't you think you can go ahead and bury the hatchet with _him? _It's not like he was trying to _kill_ you or something, sheesh!"

But the hollow expression in her amber eyes immediately softened the brawler's expression as unspoken events in the Faunus-girl's life were revealed in an instant, the sudden transformation on Yang's face bringing further concern to Weiss as well who decided to speak up to break the moment of saturated silence that had followed.

"...Right?"

_Beep_.

Ruby stared at her new opponent, never having seen her before and finding it odd that anyone could even fight in a dress like that. Sure, Weiss had her combat skirt and heels... but for crying out loud, this girl had a red newspaper-print dress on with legible headlines and everything!

"Nice corset," the girl in red stated flatly as she now brandished her weapons.

"Nice claws," Ruby quipped in reply, always one to focus on a weapon first.

The girl merely sharpened her claws swiping them against each other in two swift motions, sending sparks along the arena grounds before responding nonchalantly.

"Hmpf. I suggest you don't get too close."

Chuckling at the idle threat, Ruby cocked the lever in her blade, loading the rifle with its high-powered rounds.

"Fine by me!"

_BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!_

Three spot-on shots went without making a single dent on the Malachite's aura as she deflected the nearly supersonic projectiles with unexpected reaction speed. Grunting with impatience as the hollow third shell hit the floor with its fruitless purpose exhausted, Ruby switched to a more hit-and-run tactic as she used her semblance to dash over to the girl's other side.

_ffft. BLAM!_

Another block. And another grunt of impatience at the smug high-heeled girl's smirk.

_ffft. BLAM! ffft. BLAM! ffft. BLAM! ..._

And practically teleporting with bursts of red petals, Ruby was still unable to break Miltiades' hyper-intuitive defense with her rounds as each went deflected by the six claws that found their way in front of every bullet and that would slice each to bits before they could cause any damage. Finally fed up with the ineffective approach, Ruby charged in to engage her in closer combat range.

"Hup! Heh! Hyah!" the green-eyed twin began blocking and evading the lethal arcs of the scythe blade with loud clashes and elegant flips through the air, small exhales of exertion escaping her lips with each motion but clearly still not taking a toll on her stamina as she finally lunged her claw out to stab through the crimsonette's cape.

Tearing through the fabric, she twisted her wrist and tugged, pulling Ruby back awkwardly mid-dash and bringing her back long enough to receive a brutal slash that she was barely able to block on time with the staff of her scythe and sent her skidding back by several yards.

"Careful, riding hood. Capes kill."

Looking down at her torn cape, Ruby's silver eyes blazed with anger at her opponent's monotonous comment, stomping her foot as she could no longer hold back her retorts.

"Argh! How do you know where I'm coming!"

"Simple," Miltia replied airily as she swiped her claws together twice more to get the remnants of fabric off of the thin metal blades, "You're predictable."

A million thoughts ran through the crimsonette's mind as to what the tell must've been, but none came to mind. If her current tactics were failing to get in a single hit on her, she _had_ to come up with something else.

'But everything about my style I learned from uncle Qrow!' She mentally hedged as she gripped her weapon and each opponent dropped once more into combat-ready position.

That is... until she recalled that Qrow wasn't the _only_ person she'd witnessed handle a scythe with pristine skill.

"Grrr... try _this_ on for 'predictable'..." Ruby grumbled with restrained aggression as she slowly twirled Crescent Rose around herself.

Up in the stands, Blake was the first to turn to Yang to question the red leader's uncharacteristic readjustments.

"Yang, what's she doing-"

Both girls, along with the rest of teams RWBY and JNPR, suddenly paled slightly as the crimsonette settled in her new stance - a low reverse-gripped Crescent Rose held out to her side, blade curved up precariously from the ground away from her opponent along with her outstretched free hand beckoning the Malachite to re-engage with a smirk.

Weiss blinked at the familiar positioning, a sullen reminder of one of the few losses she had endured during her time at Beacon along with her companions against a long-gone opponent.

"No way..."

But back down at the arena, Ruby's opponent was not incredibly amused by the gesture, a plastered smirk on her features belying the hostile intent in her eyes.

"Word of caution: No more holds barred," Miltia stated with a tinge of warning in her voice.

"Oh, am _I_ supposed to be the one being careful?" Ruby retorted with the type of prissy air that would've made Weiss proud. She was her partner, after all.

And now taking the offensive, Miltia charged the crimsonette, the first few claw-strikes hitting the shaft of Crescent Rose in quick succession. The audience began watching more intently as the young girl began reverse-wielding her scythe even more, handling it more like a bō staff as she used both ends to block flurries of well-placed attacks from the girl and using the blade as a deadly trailing-end attack that began throwing the girl further off-balance.

With a few low slashes at Ruby's abdomen, Miltia's attack forced Ruby to flip through the air to dodge the strikes which would've left the silver-eyed girl open to attack had it not been for said trailing end of the blade continuing its arc beneath her. Making bodily contact for the first time, the back end of the blade slammed against Miltia's side, sending her tumbling several yards away.

"Woo! Go Ruby!~" a few cheers from the stands were beginning to arise from her many friends, egging Ruby on as her opponent charged more.

However, the hit had seemed to sap from Miltia's aura, and as Ruby began to deliver a barrage of blade attacks and score another hit on her leg, and another along her waist, she was beginning to realize that this girl's reflexes must've been an effect of her Semblance if her aura had taken such a dip from only one hit.

Miltia dodged the back-stroke of the blade which could've taken her arm off whole, only to receive another blow to the chin from the butt of the shaft which left her dazed with a pained yelp. Taking the opportunity, Ruby then decided to play her original high card as she dashed a few yards away and cocked her weapon once more.

_BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!_

As before, the first two bullets were blocked this time once more, if not barely, but the third finally broke through her defenses with a flesh wound through the leg.

"Argh!"

And with that, Miltia went down to her knee, burning through her aura to heal the wound, and just as Ruby suspected as she saw the Headmaster reappear on the platform, the Malachite had burnt it into the red in doing so.

_And the match winner is Ruby Rose. Congratulations!_ Ozpin declared as the crimsonette shyly waved to the crowd in response to the fanfare.

She was going to turn to Miltia to congratulate her on a good match, but saw no one as the girl was nearly out of the arena already, approaching an obscure figure waiting just outside the exit. Once outside, the Malachite turned to the sharp yet inquisitive query.

"_And?_"

The red-dressed girl scoffed at the curt nature of the question, but straightened her dress as if daintily repairing her dignity before responding.

"Her leading leg always points where she's about to go, and her eyes linger too long on their target."

"You think this was a tell passed on by her sister?"

"Likely," Miltia conceded with a sigh.

The figure stepped out into the walkway, white dress and pale green eyes now lit by the arena lights, "And despite your advantage, she still defeated you. How disappointing."

"She changed it up on me when I least expected it, Melanie!" Militia retorted hotly, likely the first display of emotion in her voice during the entire day.

"Well, we'll see if her sister can fare as well. Thanks, sis," Melanie replied airily, an almost snobbish tambour to her final words as she turned away.

And with just enough time to catch sight of the identical twin across the arena, Ruby exited to return to her seat as the next contestants were announced.

_Up next, we have Melanie Malachite versus Yang Xiao Long, who we now invite to the arena!_

Walking out into the center of the arena, Melanie took in the applause as she noticed her familiar opponent appear from the other side of the arena to join her.

_Once again, this match will be judged by Classic Tournament rules - first contestant whose aura drops to the red is eliminated. Are you both ready?_

Each opponent nodded to the Headmaster in the arena with a confident "yes" before he continued.

_Excellent, let's begin._

"I remember you... Ready for a repeat, Jovovich?~" Yang asked smugly as she loaded Ember Celica.

"Ugh. My name isn't _Milla_."

"Milla, Miltia, Melanie, they all sound alike~" the blonde retorted against her soon-to-be opponent's sharp reply with a careless shrug, prompting the girl in the white dress to scowl disapprovingly.

"We'll see about _that, _Blondie."

_Beep_.

And without another word, Melanie had already closed the space, her bladed heel up and striking at Yang's face in less than a second but blocked by a swift counter from Ember Celica. Twisting away, the Malachite responded with a quick reverse kick using her opposite leg that did connect with its target, sending the blonde flying back a few feet but still able to recover in mid-air and land on level footing.

"Okayyy..." Yang mumbled to herself as she steeled her eyes on her opponent and readied another combo at her midsection.

Dashing at the girl clad in the white dress, Yang's flurry of punches only met further frustration as Melanie expertly dodged or deflected body shots and low uppercuts with her flips, also keeping the blonde on her toes with successive rapid or sweeping kicks. It seemed the two young ladies were evenly matched up until Melanie connected another solid blow - coming in close after deflecting a wide hook from Yang with a high kick and now riposting with a powerful inward knee-strike into Yang's midsection - sending Yang back once more over the arena grounds.

"Argh!" The blonde brawler grunted as she landed on her back this time, eyes finally turning red after looking up at the smug approaching Malachite.

Hair blazing and temperature rising, the brawler did what she was used to, her rage fueling her strength through her semblance as she began trading blow for blow with her green-eyed opponent. At least, she _thought_ it was blow for blow.

"Hup! Heh! Hyah!" The white-dressed Malachite grunted and exhaled as her sister had done, dodging and ducking under bone-crushing blows from the enraged blonde before eventually gaining the opening sought after to throw the blonde back.

_Crack!_

And suddenly being jerked back by a kick flip from her opponent, Yang suddenly felt her head thrown back by the armored ankle that made contact against her chin, the impact jarring her mind and leaving a ringing sound in her ears that slowly coalesced into the voice from an old memory...

* * *

_"So tell me again why you go berserk when your semblance activates?"_

_Yang deadpanned in the arena, but it wasn't the current fight. No, this was several months before._

_"Do I really have to explain it again?"_

_"Only because it makes absolutely no sense..."_

_Shaking her head, she approached the young man who had only up until recently - at that time, of course - begun grasping the idea of a semblance. A young man she found intriguing, and felt slightly sorry for in his ignorance and lack of memory, which eventually had led to her making the decision to begin helping him train. Which was why she was currently in the arena with him. Namely, a certain Davin Rosfield._

_"Fine. Look, when an aura-"_

_"No, no," he interrupted, catching the blonde by surprise, "I mean, why get so mad when you fight?"_

_The question left Yang thinking for a moment, asking herself a question she'd never really felt was worth asking after all this time. After all, no need to fix what ain't broken._

_"Meh," she replied with a shrug, "it helps me focus."_

_Once again, she was caught by surprise when he chuckled softly and shook his head, "No it doesn't. Your hits, though stronger, get increasingly sloppy to say the least. Not to mention you focus too much on your punches and not enough on your kicks."_

_"Hey! Who's training who here again? I know you've got your own team now and you managed to tie with the Ice Queen, but c'mon!" She responded with a laugh._

_Raising his hands placatingly, he replied with a smirk, "Just an observation..."_

_But nodding her head with a predatory grin, Yang shot back, "Well then, observe THIS!"_

_BAM BAM! zzzzsssSSHH!_

_And firing both gauntlets behind her to dash forwards and close the space between them in an instant, she readied her first high kick as he unsheathed Starkillers and powered it into shield form, blocking her initial kick and the multiple leg-based combos that followed. Finally getting angrier, her eyes flashed red as her kicks became more brutal, yet all were continually blocked by Davin's shield until a final knee-strike was held just under his torso by his shield._

_Her eyes going back to lilac as she realized he was keeping her onslaught at bay, he gently pressed her leg back down before speaking up._

_"You see, when you get angry you stop using your core. You have to use your whole body..." he paused as he sheathed his weapon and walked up to her side, "Keep the tension here."_

_And reaching his hand out, he gently placed it on her bare midriff in indication._

_Yang would often remember long after that incident how her eyes widened at the skin on skin contact, and though it was purely innocent on his part, she also wondered why she hadn't made him pay a hefty physical price for having touched her in a place that many guys had only dreamt of feeling. Then again, he had a point. In her anger, she was forgetting to use her core, but the blush she surely was coming down with at the time was plenty evident enough to show that she was having conflicting thoughts about how he had chosen to indicate the area of improvement._

_All she was able to do was stutter a response, "O-Okay."_

_Taking his hand off, he merely continued as if nothing happened, breaking the spell on the blonde, "You have an incredible offense and you're pretty fast, so you could win against nearly any opponent - even those with a leg-based offense - if you use your power wisely. Remember, true power is not in strength, but control."_

_She cocked her head at the phrase, a concerned eyebrow raised, "What if I need my anger?"_

_"For?" The quizzical query followed._

_"I dunno..." she shuffled a bit where she stood, debating within herself whether or not she could trust him with the knowledge of her vulnerability and deciding to go for it, "To forget fear?"_

_At this, she could tell he was trying to put two and two together, asking himself what this strong young Huntress-in-training could possibly fear._

_"Of losing?"_

_She nodded in response, her gaze slowly making its way to the floor. After all this time training with him, it wasn't becoming very difficult for him to read her. Nor was it becoming very difficult for her to open up._

_"Yeah, and I mean more than just the match..."_

_And surprising herself for the first time since talking to Blake before the dance, Yang started talking to him about her mother. But in Davin's case, it was open, in-depth, and with much more detail. From the incredible things her mother could do as a Huntress to the pain she felt at knowing that she had left without reason. And how scared that losing anyone else would make her feel. At the end, they stayed sitting on the edge of the arena platform side by side in a comfortable silence until he finally spoke up._

_"Thank you."_

_Turning to him, glad that she had found another confidante to talk to, Yang asked with a small smile, "For what?"_

_"For the compliment of your trust," he replied with a small smile of his own._

_"Ah well. Now you know why I need my anger to get the most out of my semblance," she added with a tinge of pride, "It helps me be fearless!"_

_"You see, that's the thing," he added after a slight pause, shifting himself on the edge of the platform so he could face her, "With all due respect, becoming fearless isn't the point. That's impossible. It's learning how to control your fear, and how to be free from it. In your case, Lil' Sun Dragon, if you want to unlock your true power... it'll come at a point between rage and serenity."_

_"Heh, thanks for the advice, 'Professor'," Yang teased as she playfully punched him in the shoulder, "I guess today's session helped me out more than it did you!"_

_But before he could respond, their scrolls went off, indicating the approaching curfew hour. Getting off the platform, Davin offered Yang his hand to help her off as well before speaking up with a grin._

_"We're helping each other out. But really, you should try it someday. Let 'em have it with a FULL arsenal of hand-to-hand combat. Confuse them with your kicks, devastate them with your arms. You get into the side, you jab 'em in the throat. You win."_

_It had been an awfully straight-forward tactic, but the idea of a simple takedown like that from a supposed 'newbie' like Davin left Yang smiling at herself as the pair left the arena._

* * *

Opening her eyes, Yang found herself facing Melanie once more in the arena and being charged by what surely would be the final scissor kick to the abdomen to finish her.

She knew she was in the yellow, so she did the only thing she could think of at the moment as Melanie's bladed heel came inches from contact.

"A point between rage and serenity..."

Taking a deep breath and opening her now red-irised eyes, Yang's hand shot out with incredible speed and precision and caught Melanie's foot in midair. Completely absorbing the kinetic energy from the kick, the audience gasped as Yang's hair began turning a fiery jet black once more while she ducked under her opponent's second spinning kick with her free foot.

Falling back, Yang held her boxer's stance and moved back as Melanie came in with a string of feints led by her lethal heels and waited for her opportunity to strike. It came swiftly in the form of another kick meant to make bone-shattering contact with Yang's ribs.

Using her arm to redirect Melanie's kick down and away from its target with incredible speed, Yang spun and delivered an unexpected reverse roundhouse kick to the girl's head, sending her to the floor. The Malachite popped back up, but was punished further by another unbelievably rapid combo of hooks and jabs that left the girl dazed before Yang finally spun into her immediate space and leveled her with a straight jab to the throat.

No sooner had Melanie's limp form hit the ground when Ozpin appeared over the platform with a lingering glance at the brawler's now brunette appearance before it faded back to blonde.

_And the match winner is Yang Xiao Long. Congratulations, young lady!_

The audience broke out in a roar of approval after witnessing the turn of events, a good fight always a highlight in the Vytal Tournaments.

Looking down, the brawler now took out a familiar medallion from her leather side pouch on her skirt-belt, softly kissing its golden surface before putting it back and exiting the arena.

* * *

"So, you figured it out," Blake half-asked/half-stated quietly as Yang exited the arena, having outstripped the rest of the teams in reaching the blonde.

Immediately searching out her partner from among the shadows, Yang shrugged as the raven-haired girl made herself seen and responded, "I think so. Still not sure what it is or where it's from, but it's strong..."

"Stronger than your usual semblance?" Ruby asked excitedly, all of a sudden behind Yang and startling her sister as the rest of their friends approached.

"Gah! Uh, yeah Rubes," the brawler began with some uncertainty, "Though I think it kinda _is_ my semblance... but obviously there has to be something else to it since making Grimm do what you want is pretty much unheard of."

"It's the 'something else' that intrigues me," Ren suddenly began from among the group, continuing as he stepped forward, "You were fighting quite a bit like Davin in there. You and Ruby both."

A few concerned glances were traded among the RWBY, JNPR, VNDS and Dorme teams as both sisters looked down in contemplation, but Ruby was the first to speak up as she sheepishly scratched the back of her head.

"Heh, yeah... I guess there are plenty of things he taught us that we're still using now. I don't know if I could've won any other way!"

Ren then glanced at the silent blonde who was unconsciously running her idle thumb over the small circular bulge in her side pouch.

"We're very grateful for everything he's done for us," the stoic began, directing himself more to Yang than anyone else, "And we miss him greatly."

She sighed deeply before finally looking up, "Yeah, it just sucks that he has to be gone, y'know?"

"Well, not quite," Ren replied, drawing the attention of the group even further and promping him to continue as he now looked over the dozen or so members of his audience.

"You see, everyone, Davin will never be completely gone. Yes, he may not be with us anymore, but he lives on through the things he's accomplished and the lessons he's taught us. What Ruby and Yang have done here only attest to that, and that's why I say Davin lives on. He lives on through the people he's cared for and through our shared goals. He lives through _us_."

"Well said, Ren," Jaune now began as he walked over and placed a hand on the stoic's shoulder along with Ruby's embrace. It was embrace between the crimsonette and her fellow leader and peer that quickly grew into a group hug with Ren in the middle.

"Thanks," Yang finally managed to voice out at Ren as well as they all began pulling back, "That means a lot."

And turning back to find a pouting May in front of her, Yang was faced with another unexpectedly strong hug before the girl pulled back as well and spoke up.

"I can only imagine how hard it must've been for you. I could tell you both were very close! But I know he'd be very proud of you right now and especially with your amazing abilities!" she concluded with a wide grin.

"Hah, I think so too, May!" Yang replied with a smile, but couldn't help feeling a strange sense of uncertainty when it came to Davin's current state.

The younger Arc had already left, but Yang remained standing there, trying to recall more of the previous night's events in her dream only to finally look up once more and see Jaune sending her an uncharacteristic glare as if saying, 'We need to talk about that last part later.'

Nodding in understanding as everyone finished congratulating Ruby, the brawler contented herself with being swarmed by her friends with adulation and congratulations while they got to their seats and the next contestants readied themselves for combat. One of said contestants being Seul.

He stayed back, scrupulously checking his weapon on a nearby table before stopping his work and looking up.

"I thought you were finished with being the spy."

And emerging from the shadows behind him, the ravenette replied coolly, "Old habits die hard. Something I had been meaning to talk to you about, but had never found an opportune time to do so. Simply exit the arena after your match. I'll find you."

Gripping the hilt of his weapon at the orders of the familiar voice, the Dorme fighter spun around, only to see no one was there. He stood up, hand on hilt just to be safe as he looked around the area. No one was neither found nor heard... until...

"_Seul?_" two voices in unison behind him caught his attention. Two very similar voices. Namely, two _Malachite_ voices.

His eyes widening just a bit, Seul's hand dropped from the weapon as he found the nearest exit and dashed away.

* * *

**A/N: First, I'd like to say that this chapter is dedicated to Monty. May he rest in peace. **

**We can all honor him by keeping his memory alive and doing what he would've wanted us to have done - continue creating and living our lives in the most fulfilling way we can find. It's what I intend to do, and I've decided to pay tribute through Ren in this chapter. Death is a tragic thing, an insatiable enemy, but our legacy and name can outlive it as I have no doubt that Monty Oum's will. We'll miss you, Monty.**

**In regards to Chronicle, as I've said before, I'll continue working on it despite increased business and overall hecticness of life. And in better news, the OCs have been picked and I'll be sending out the last few acceptance PMs in a day or so. Congrats to those who have been chosen, and more will be revealed by end of Volume 2! :D**

**Until then, stay tuned for the next chapter, The Newcomers!**

**EDIT: And by the way, search pictures of Milla Jovovich. She'd make an _awesome_ set of Malachite Twins! :P**

**Happy Reading!**


	63. Vol 2-17: The Newcomers

**A/N: Ah. Another day, another dollar. Welp, finally got the next chapter out, and from here on out I'll be ****doing my best to keep it to weekly updates. Can't promise anything with the issuing of chapters from the other two RWBY fics I'm working on - _Jaune Arc: TFU_ and _JCoR_ \- but I'll be doing my best to remain somewhat consistent. In any case, Chapter 17 begins now!**

* * *

_**The Newcomers**_

* * *

May Arc, the youngest of the Arc family, now lay in wait as two tournament overseers above the arena waited on the third. She nervously straightened her light blue dress and checked the laces on her steel-toed boots while ensuring the ribbons on her arms remained taut before the third of the arbiters finally appeared.

Up in the stands, Glynda looked over at the Atlesian leader who had just rejoined them with narrowed eyes before speaking up, "James, from what I recall, it's entirely unbecoming of you to take a spontaneous recess between matches."

But with a small smile, the General merely glanced at his accoster with a light-hearted laugh, "Dear Glynda, though I appreciate the concern, I was only having a brief conversation with my student before she entered the arena."

"A conversation with Miss Ardavanus?" Ozpin now joined in, his curiosity piqued, "A rather peculiar time to be doing so, wouldn't you say?"

"Well, I had mentioned that she is one of my best recruiters," Ironwood now continued without missing a beat, "And I intend for her to use those added skills in her following match... Miss Arc shows to hold some true potential, if the reports about her are anywhere near accurate..."

"Hmph, be careful what you wish for," Glynda cautioned with a subtle smirk as she stood up to make her way to the platform below, "We women are seldom easy to predict, much less control."

"Duly noted," he replied softly as he and Ozpin traded light-hearted glances and a short chuckle.

Now at the platform, Glynda daintily straightened out her blouse and skirt before approaching the mic and clearing her throat.

_For our following match today, we invite to the arena May Arc and Terra Ardavanus of Atlas Academy._

Two young blondes emerged from either side of the arena, each similar in complexion yet opposite in wardrobe. Though May had her light blue dress and combat boots, Terra wore a black long-sleeve crop top shirt with green camo shorts that went down to about mid thigh along with brown oversized gloves and a pair of grey goggles over her head. And unlike May's combat boots, the other blonde's footwear consisted of military style mid-knee high-heel boots.

Blue eyes met green ones as Glynda continued the proceedings.

_This match will be judged by Classic Tournament rules - first contestant whose aura drops to the red is eliminated. Are you both ready?_

"Almost," the evident elder of the two soon-to-be opponents spoke up, the smooth decisive tone in her voice revealing the scope of the young woman's maturity, "How about we make this interesting, Miss Arc. A little wager, maybe?"

May raised a brow adorably at the unexpected proposition, "Oh? What do you have in mind?"

"Well, you see, I noticed you're a bit of a free agent," Terra began as she nonchalantly pulled back at her gloves to make them tight, "So to help you decide which Academy to attend next semester, I propose we set the terms to this match to be that if I win, you join me in Atlas Academy next semester as a first year student. What do you think?"

On the stands above, Ozpin's countenance fell as he looked over at his Atlesian colleague and realized his intention of 'recruiting' the younger sister of such a powerful student like Jaune. It was an uneasy feeling that spread through the young Arc's friends' minds as well. But back below, May looked up and pouted pensively as she now held both hands behind herself.

"Hmmm, okay!" She replied, much to Terra's satisfaction - until the young Arc continued, "Buuut, why not add a few terms of my own, too!"

The green-eyed blonde's brows furrowed as her smile faded just a bit, "Continue..."

"If _I_ win," May continued with a cute grin as her lithe hands worked on furtively pulling something out from her waist-level sash behind her back, "You join _me_ next year right here at Beacon!"

Somewhat caught off-guard by the unforeseen twist in the negotiation, Terra froze and finally replied with a tight smile, "Deal."

"Splendid! Then we are ready!"

Taking their places on opposite ends of the arena, each blonde settled into combat stances while the eldest blonde on the platform concluded the introductions.

_Very well, the match will begin at the starting signal._

Ozpin turned to glance with a subtle grin at the similarly startled judge beside him while Glynda made her way up.

"She certainly is sharp, that one."

"No matter," James began hoarsely, uncharacteristically shifting in his seat as his attention remained riveted on the arena grounds, "Terra has one of the more powerful semblances I've ever seen."

_Beep._

Grinning with anticipation in the arena at the starting signal, May's smile dimmed a bit when she noticed Terra charge her at superhuman speed. Unarmed.

"Wha-?"

Letting go of the item behind her back, she held her hands forward in defense position as each blonde engaged each other in surprisingly similar styles of Win Chun, straight jabs and kicks being dealt and blocked between the two as the audience watched on in silent intrigue.

"No weapons? I didn't even think that was allowed..." Jaune stated above, clearly the most concerned of them all for his little sister. With Phrrha and Seul at either side of him, it was surprisingly the boy who replied first.

"It is, at least by default. It's usually just a strategy during the beginning of a match to size up and wear down an opponent at the same time without even using your weapon."

But he knew better. Seul had gotten to know May and her technique - all those times watching her and Jaune practice and spar in their hometown so long ago, usually at the expense of the latter, he had to have learned _something_ about her style. She was proficient as a martial artist and in hand to hand combat, holding back on her weapons and semblance unless absolutely necessary or against greater numbers to conserve her Aura, despite its admittedly vast quantities.

But it was a tactic that this Terra character was using as well. And if she wasn't even _armed... _he involuntarily shuddered at the thought of what kind of trump card she was hiding.

The physical exchange of fists and boots continued in the arena, each girl finding small openings in the other's defenses and delivering an occasionally successful blow, only to be driven back into the defensive by the opponent's successive counterattack.

"Not bad for a young girl such as yourself," Terra began as she went for a high palm-strike that went evaded by her nimble opponent, "It can take at least a decade for Hunters to perfect this technique."

"How long do you think I've been practicing?" May quickly replied with an innocent smile, an amiable gesture followed by a roundhouse kick that nearly connected with its target.

"Not long _enough_."

Grunting with the effort, the green-eyed blonde blocked the steel-toed strike and held the girl's leg tightly, forcing an opening that she immediately exploited with the first solid strike of the match: a jab to the ribs that sent the young Arc flying back.

"Argh!" Landing on the ground a few feet away, May did the quickest pop up she could muster and re-engaged Terra only to find that the momentum of the match was swinging in the elder blonde's favor, two punches blocked and one making contact on the Arc, two punches blocked and one making contact, over and over with each successful blow being more taxing than the last.

Jaune was watching intently, keeping an eye on his sister's aura levels that she had set to broadcast to his scroll at his request and noticing how Terra was chipping away at his sister's reserves which were now at the yellow.

"This doesn't look good, Jaune..." Pyrrha began shakily, loosely grasping the white knight's arm.

"No, she knows what she's doing," he replied like someone that was trying to convince himself as much as he was to everyone else, "She used to do this with me all the time... Let me get the upper hand to let me think I was winning and get sloppy before leveling me. She's doing that now, she _has_ to be!"

But the Arkos couple's gazes only increased with worry as the powerful blonde continued her brutal assault on the girl, driving her back across the arena as she kept up her offense step by step.

Finally finishing her lethal combo, Terra's elbow connected with May's face in a tight hook to send her to the ground, a blow which would've ended the match had it not been for her larger aura banks thanks to her Arc heritage. Drops of blood that wasn't her own dripping from her fist-clenched gloves, Terra failed to realize May's subtle smirk as she unexpectedly came up to deliver a dazing uppercut at her opponent.

"Aha! I _knew_ it!" Jaune exclaimed, all but jumping out of his seat in celebration.

Terra's expression was nowhere near as pleased as May seemed to come in for another cross, "What the-!"

But the cross never came. Ducking low and turning her body with all its momentum, May twisted sharply with both hands now on the ground. Terra never saw the Scorpion Kick coming.

_PLAT!_

The boot to head contact resounded around the arena, the audience's surprise was held in check only by May's next move: with both hands still on the ground, she used her momentum to continue the motion of her kick to perform a second spinning kick with both legs off the floor that rapidly made bone-crushing contact against Terra's side.

The resulting impact lowered Terra's aura levels to the same amount as May's as she flew back into a wall.

"Boom." The younger Arc began, wiping a mix of sweat and blood from her brow as she approached the crater in which her adversary lay.

That is... until the ground below her began to shake tremendously.

"Wha-"

_Cr-Cr-CRACK!_

And with a mighty jolt, the ground under her came apart as a now peeved Terra walked back into the arena, her entire body glowing a pale yellow and hair flowing outwards with the gusts of her aura as she pointed an outstretched glove at another portion of wall and literally tore it off to throw at the Arc.

"What the _what!?_" Yang cried out as she watched May now have to dodge giant boulders of debris through the arena with successive flips and handsprings.

"Oddly enough, her ability makes sense," Blake added quietly beside her, "Her semblance is _Terra_kinesis."

Weiss turned and narrowed her eyes at the ravennette, "Was that a pun?"

"No, that's... actually a thing."

"Ah," the heiress relented as she turned and saw Terra's next wave of stony projectiles launched, "Well that _thing_ is about to crush May."

And sure enough, like a discharge from a multiple-barreled volley gun, the earthbender sent a barrage of smaller stones at May, dazing her on impact as a few knocked her on the head for just long enough for the green-eyed blonde to shift her foot and turn May's area of the arena to quicksand.

Sinking into the liquefied floor, Terra then re-hardened the ground to lock May in place and dashed to her to deliver an uppercut so strong that it blasted her out of her earthen shackles.

"I am certainly impressed you've lasted this long!" Terra began in the arena with masked but genuine surprise as she saw the younger Arc struggling to pick herself off the floor and no announcement being made to call the match, "Imagine what you could be capable of with four years of training in Atlas!"

And with body glowing once more, the young woman tore off another piece of the wall with a wide gesture using her arm, ready to slam it down on her opponent and end the match. May, however, had other plans as she reached behind her sash and pulled out the item she was looking for.

She then bolted upright and launched her counterattack.

"Yah!"

_Hissssssss-BOOM!_

The audience gasped as the large boulder over Terra's head exploded into dust from the impact of a small metal orb attached to the end of the ribbon tied to the girl's arm, a weapon which was promptly yanked back into its owner's grip.

"Ah. So you're armed after all," Terra began as she began lifting walls of earth and rock around the young Arc in an attempt to slam her with them.

But with the whistling hiss of metal speeding through the air, May directed her newly formed Meteor Hammer with expertly aimed twirls and lashes, each rocky obstacle now promptly destroyed in succession. Twirling her orb-ended ribbon around after the final wall collapsed, she then quickly swung it out at Terra who tried to dodge the projectile with a flip but was stunned to see the orb curve and land a solid hit on her stomach, sending her tumbling back several feet.

May advanced as the ribbon came back, wrapping itself around her arm as if it had a mind of its own and catching the orb in her hand. Terra struggled to a standing position, clutching her stomach as the younger Arc patiently waited with her ever-present innocent smile.

"H-How did you do that?"

The younger blonde merely winked, causing the earthbender to scoff and right her stance, a swift forward motion with her foot causing the ground to liquefy once more between the opponents.

But sensing the attack, May flipped over the quicksand, throwing the Meteor Hammer out once more as another barrage of boulders were hurled at her in midair.

_BAM CRASH BOOM CRACK!_

The series of earthen projectiles were promptly destroyed as the girl twirled and flipped through the air, all the momentum fed into the orb that laid waste to Terra's offense as May reached behind her sash once more with her opposite hand and pulled out another item.

Landing gracefully a few yards from Terra, May tied the second item around the ribbon of her other arm as Terra, panting heavily from exertion, clenched both glowing hands in fists.

"Yah!"

_BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM...!_

Swinging both fists down on the ground in front of her, Terra unleashed a wave of destruction from where she stood, the entire floor buckling and cracking as the wave neared May. But leaping over the powerful attack, the girl spun once more in the air as she caught the orb in one hand and launched the item from the other - a small hook with two half-inch prongs that whipped out through the debris and embedded itself in Terra's bare midriff.

Landing as she heard the elder blonde yelp in pain, May called out as small tendril of energy began appearing along her arm, "I sincerely apologize for this!"

_zzzZzzZZZZzRATTTzzzZZrrrAAKKK!_

And lighting up the arena, pure electricity coursed from May's arm to her ribbon, traveling down the superconductive fabric into the hook which effectively tased Terra until Glynda finally appeared on the platform. May stopped once she heard the platinum blonde woman clearing her throat and walked over to the downed earthbender to help her up.

_And the match winner is May Arc. Congratulations!_

Her aura quickly healing the area of broken skin that May's weapon had impacted once the hook was removed, Terra lolled her head over to the young Arc who was supporting her over her own shoulder.

"Y-You beat me?" she began slowly, clearly affected by the electric attack.

"Uh huh," May replied meekly as the audience began applauding both her victory and good sportsmanship.

"Oh, it's been a while since the last time that happened. More than a year ago, actually... By the guy who ended up being my team leader."

May looked at her with some curiosity as she began walking out with Terra's arm draped over her shoulder, "You don't seem very upset about your loss today..."

Glancing at her again with half-lidded eyes, Terra responded with a light slur, "I-I guess you could say I'm a little shocked by the turn of events is all," and noticing her unintentional pun, she let out a crooked grin, "Pffft! Haha, I said _shocked!_"

Smiling as well as the pair of blondes made it to the exit where a few nurses were waiting, May chuckled, "Oookay, it's time to get you some help to make sure you're okay, okay?"

"Hehe, you said 'okay' like three times..." Terra groggily began as she let herself be placed in a small stretcher by the nurses but called out as they began wheeling her away and her Dorme comrades and Beacon friends joined, "A-And I remember our deal! I'll h-have the paperwork filled out as soon as these nice people are done here!"

May couldn't help a small laugh as the elder blonde's head finally slumped back onto the stretcher.

"Wot on Monty's bloody Remnant was that?" Cipher asked as he reached the smiling Arc.

"Oh, nothing. Looks like we'll have a new transfer student next year, that's all... She actually seems pretty nice!"

Jaune then came up with his team, running to his sister and giving her a tight hug.

"Grk! Jaune! Can't breathe!"

"Oh! Sorry, May-flower!" The knight began as he stepped back, scratching his head sheepishly, "We just got really worried about you out there... I almost thought you wouldn't come back from that last hit."

"And when have I ever _not_ been able to bounce back from a hit!" The small girl beamed as she proudly jutted out her chest before suddenly bending over and entering a short coughing fit, "Though that hug you just gave me was really strong! You've become waaay stronger since you came to Beacon!"

"That's what _I_ keep telling him..." Pyrrha added good-naturedly, a fact which left the last two members of their team chuckling at the veracity of the statement.

Amiably helping his sister straighten up, Jaune grinned as he slowly rubbed circles on her back with his palm to calm her, "Well I guess it's fair payback for all those attack hugs I got from you back at home, then!"

But despite her weakened state... May somehow still managed to turn and tackle him to the ground in her vice-like grip. Everyone there began to laugh until Ruby, who was closest to the arena entrance, suddenly looked at Seul.

"Hey Seul, I think they just called your name!"

"Did you catch the name of my opponent?" He asked, suddenly at the ready.

"Marion... ette? Marionette, I think."

"Alright," he stated as he began making his way into the arena. That is, until a small hand suddenly grabbed his arm to hold him back.

He turned to see two expectant silver orbs gleaming at him nervously.

'Gah! Why did I do that!?' Ruby complained internally as his level stare beckoned a response, "U-Um, good luck, Seul!"

And flashing him a quick grin, Ruby watched as he merely replied with a faint upward turn of the corner of his lip and entered the arena.

Of everyone who saw the quick exchange, Yang was the one who knew better. Walking up to her sister, she understandingly placed an arm around her shoulder and spoke softly so that only the crimsonette could hear.

"Smooth, Rubes. Smooth."

A few years ago, the brawler may have tried to ensure the relationship didn't continue by intimidating the guy and scaring him away from her precious Ruby, but as Ruby looked up at her sister with an expression that was a mix of realization and fear of what her sister might do about it, Yang decided that she had reached the point where she wouldn't interfere as much as she did before.

'Heh, Vin really did change everything. Big dummy, he even got me to take it easy on Rubes... I guess she deserves to be with who she wants, after all,' she thought as she recalled the many instances where he'd persuaded her to be more considerate of Ruby's freedom.

Ruby then gulped at the sound of Yang's silence, thinking that for her not to say anything for so long, it must've meant she was planning something especially sinister. The blonde brawler merely smirked as she tightened her arm around her sister into a headlock.

"It's alright, I won't get into your business this time!"

A struggling Ruby gasped in surprise, pausing her efforts to free herself momentarily to look up in disbelief at her sister, "R-Really!?"

"Unless you get hurt, of course," Yang replied solemnly as she let her sister go, a small cackle of flames in her hair as she continued, "In which case, there will be some _serious_ ball-busting going on!"

"Okay, okay!" Ruby quipped back, a smile now growing on her face.

"Uhh... What just happened?" A now recovered Jaune who had just suffered near-suffocation from his own sister's affection asked.

"It's a sister thing," Weiss airily replied sideways at the knight as she watched her teammates with crossed arms, "We don't even know what they're talking about half the time. The dunces."

Finally all settled down, Yang was about to usher her sister and everyone else back up to their seats before Ironwood's second announcement rang clear throughout the arena.

_For the next match, we have Seul Sinclair versus Penny Marionette._ _This will be judged by Classic Tournament rules - first contestant whose aura drops to the red is eliminated. Are you both ready?_

"_WHAT!?_" team RWBY and Sun exclaimed in unison before sprinting back to peek around the arena entrance.

"Oh... My..." Ruby began, unable to finish as their suspicions were confirmed and the boy in the arena was indeed facing an all-too-familiar redhead in a bow, "Penny!?"

"How'd we not see her in the qualifying rounds!?" Yang balked incredulously as well.

Weiss shrugged in disbelief herself, "We must've missed her match somehow."

"This... will be a short match. One way or another," Blake observed quietly beside the group.

* * *

"Ready!" Penny joyfully replied to the announcement inside the arena while Seul merely nodded and placed a hand on his hilt.

Smiling at him, Penny then saluted with her greeting, "And Sal-u-_tations!_ I look forward to our upcoming match!"

Seul raised a brow as he observed this seemingly harmless girl who furrowed her own brows in turn.

"You... don't talk much, do you," she asked in curiosity.

He merely shook his head as the commencement signal went off.

_Beep_.

Now, Seul was no Faunus, but he could certainly hear something behind the girl mecha-shifting as soon as the signal was heard... he just couldn't see what. It didn't matter, this match would be dealt with swiftly so he didn't get too much into it and possibly cause this young lady some serious harm.

But no sooner did he reach down to grab his hilt when his chokuto came out of his umbrella as if it had a mind of its own.

"What the-"

And without further time to react, he had to pull his sheath to block the lunge from his possessed sword, now engaging his own weapon in what looked like a fencing match in the middle of the arena grounds. But looking sideways at his real opponent, he quickly noticed how her hands seemed to be manipulating his sword from a distance.

'I... Don't think that's quite telekinesis,' he observed as he noticed each of her fingers moving with excessive dexterity than would be needed for someone with a telekinetic semblance before having to block another rapid combo of attacks from his own sword.

"Argh!" He cried out as his blade found a hole in his defenses and managed to graze his arm.

But then he saw it. A glint of light next to the blade, like the shimmer from the thread of a spider's web that you can't see unless you look at it from just the right angle. He glanced back at the smirking redhead with renewed anger.

'She's using Hansel like a _puppet!_' and without a second thought, he focused his aura into Gretel and slashed upward, unleashing a razor wind blast that severed the multiple strings that Penny had extended to hijack his chokuto.

Catching his sword, he didn't have much time to react but to open his umbrella as Penny assaulted him with two curved swords of her own that seemed to appear from her backpack. Doing his best to advance at his stationary opponent while engaging these two intricate blades was beginning to become rather cumbersome until he saw similar shimmers next to them.

Chuckling darkly, Seul parried another double blade-strike and slashed upwards once more with his weapons, eliciting a gasp from Penny as her weapons fell from her control once more. She stretched her arms once more at her weapons, the nearly invisible strings speeding to their targets to regain control of the blades, but Seul was on her in a flash, slashing and cutting with strikes she was barely able to dodge.

"Oh no... Don't do it, Seul..." Jaune whispered despairingly from the stands above, eliciting a very worried glance from those in the group who had seen what the boy was capable of.

The precise flurry of slashes were getting closer and closer to their mark as Seul continued toying with the unarmed girl until she tripped on her own foot and fell backwards with a surprised yelp.

"Heh, you're not too coordinated without your weapons, are you?" Seul commented above her with a twisted smirk, arm raised to deliver a match-ending slash when Penny suddenly shot her arm out and yanked it back, sending a blade flying back to her and cutting Seul's inner arm in the process.

Gripping his arm in pain, Seul growled in anger as Penny struggled to get up, drawing her second blade back as Jaune and the rest of the group watched from above.

"Bugger!" Cipher cursed from above, "Chaps, I think that girl's in for a world of pain right about now..."

His comrades and the Beacon teams readied themselves to jump into the arena as Seul refocused on the girl, but they stopped short as they noticed two more blades emerge from Penny's back and interlock with the first two, forming two bladed staffs that she began spinning rapidly to protect herself from Seul's renewed onslaught.

With an angered yell, he began slashing over and over again at the girl's defenses but was unable to break through the whirring blades between him and her. So focusing his aura, he began whirling his weapons around himself until he created a small whirlwind, a sight that several of his new associations recalled from the first time they met with subtle grimaces.

The whirlwind grew until some of the debris around the arena that Miss Goodwitch hadn't replaced were picked up and being thrown around, smashing against Penny's whirling blades. The moment he saw the blades slow their spin, Seul condensed the whirlwind around himself until the force was focused on his weapons... and slashing Hansel and Gretel sideways, he launched a sharpened wind gust that cut clean through the blades and sent Penny skidding back with its residual force. She didn't even notice Seul speeding at her until she felt a searing pain through her arm.

"An arm for an arm, you-!" Seul began in crazed anger until stopping himself short at the sight of her inner arm. The gash was deep, but no one could notice from a distance was he was looking at only inches away.

Circuitry.

He glanced at the wide-eyed girl in disbelief, "You're... You're not-"

_WHAM! _

The sudden right hook at Seul's head floored him, the surprise as his head hit the ground nowhere near the amount of surprise in Penny's face towards what she had just done. Or as much as the audience's surprise when Ironwood stepped out on the platform with an almost amused smirk.

_And the match winner is Penny Marionette. Congratulations!_

The applause from the audience came with only a little hesitation as teams RWBY, JNPR and VNDS could only gape at the short lived match and its startling ending.

"She knocked his aura into the red with just one punch..." Pyrrha remarked in awe before Nora joined in.

"I like her!~" she chirped happily as Ren silently chuckled at her antics.

"You would, Nora."

"Just imagine our combined forces - my hammer and her fists!~"

"It would be the end of Beacon as we know it."

Laughing at the ever-amusing back and forth between the Noren couple, everyone was surprised to turn back to the arena and find that Seul was no longer there.

"Where'd he go?" Ruby asked with evident concern before Jaune approached and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"Ruby... Seul is a guy who really values his alone time, and he takes the chance to make it that way whenever he can. I think this is one of those times."

"Heh, sounds a lot like-" Yang began with a snorting chuckle before cutting herself off as she searched for the butt of her joke, "Hey, anyone seen Blake?"

* * *

"That didn't go so well," a voice called out from behind a lone figure seated at a small iron coffee table just outside the amphitheater.

He sighed as the warm afternoon breeze tussled his brown hair, "What do you want?"

"A reason not to finish what I started almost two years ago."

Seul smirked as he felt the point of a blade suddenly pressed against the back of his neck.

"I thought I was clear enough when we crossed paths again in the Dorme forests," he remarked smugly as he calmly turned to face the black-bowed ravenette behind him.

"Only clear enough to show that you must be getting sloppy if all you could do was render me unconscious," she spat angrily in reply.

Seul scoffed at the statement, repeating her words mockingly, "_Getting sloppy_. You saw what I did back at Dorme. Heh, I bet you were even searching for your bull-headed friend among the corpses. No no, Blake... You should know better. What does it mean when a trained assassin doesn't kill you with a close range slash?"

Blake narrowed her eyes with a grimace, Gambol Shroud still at his throat as he continued.

"...It means they aren't _trying_. I kept my promise. You defeated me, and are no longer a target."

"Then why continue hunting the White Fang!" Blake shouted as she pressed the blade a little further against his neck.

"Oh. These emotions must've been brewing for quite some time," Seul retorted with a cautios chuckle, making sure his neck didn't press too hard against the metal, "Well, I told you all in that airship once you finally woke up. It's the same reason I hunt the Grimm. For sport. Mostly. But also because even the monsters in this world need someone to keep their populations in check."

He then glared at her with a level gaze and narrowed his eyes, "Which brings me to something I've been meaning to ask you..."

"I defected," Blake added quickly, "I am no longer associated with the White Fang."

"Ah," he replied with a slight nod, "Then why is your blade at my neck right now?"

"Because you were supposed to be _dead_. And for the past few months, I've had to pretend there was nothing wrong with you being here. That is, until you accepted Ozpin's invitation yesterday."

"So you want to kill me? Go ahead," he began as he glanced down at the blade still at his neck, "Your 'Gambol Shroud', if I recall correctly, is less than an inch away from where you nicked me last time."

Blake looked at his neck and involuntarily shuddered when she saw the scar, a desperate attempt to escape his killing blow which should've killed him. How did he manage to survive? She let her weapon drop as she sighed heavily at the memory.

"We were each in a much darker place once," Seul spoke up after casually checking his throat for any drawn blood, "And I told you, we each have two sides fighting for control within us. You and I, we're not so different in that respect."

"Do not compare us. Ever. You kill merely for the _fun_ of it," Blake replied harshly, her grip tightening around her weapon's hilt once more.

"Hah!" Seul laughed scornfully, "Don't kid yourself. You were on that same path, I could see it in your eyes back then!"

Blake looked down, recalling how Adam's intense training had nearly turned her into a mindless killing machine... But that wasn't her. She had made sure it would _never_ be her. She never wanted to become someone like Seul and had gone well out of her way to distance herself from everyone in her past life to be certain. Yet here was one of the most feared assassins by the White Fang, seated right in front of her.

"Why do you wish to come to Beacon," Blake asked flatly, disregarding everything Seul had just said.

He observed her for a moment, relaxing a bit as he lazily looked around the school buildings surrounding them before responding, "Because like you, I believe there's a chance to change."

"Not everyone can change," Blake quipped sharply.

"No... Not everyone," Seul calmly continued, leaning back a bit with his hand resting on his umbrella hilt, "And maybe I'm one of those people. But after being forced by Davin to meet your group, I was... encouraged... by Jaune to avoid ditching every last one of you and found myself fighting in a war because of it. Honestly, I have no further reason to be here anymore... yet, here I am."

"And not ditching us is supposed to be your redeeming quality?"

"No. You're missing the point," Seul continued, ignoring her glare, "Neither of us are the people we used to be. You joined an organization larger than yourself for an equally important cause. I'm... _trying_... to turn a new leaf to do the same. I think Beacon will help."

He let out a small smile as he drove his point home.

"After all, you and I are simply two people who wish to use their skills to make this world at least a little less of a crappy place."

Blake sighed again and nodded slowly as she finally resheathed her weapon and slung it across her back.

"Very well. I suppose our odds are behind us now."

Hopping down from his seat, Seul extended a hand at his Faunus counterpart with a rare grin.

"A truce then. At the very least. Between two somewhat reformed assassins!"

Blake chuckled as she looked up at him, "...'Somewhat'?"

"Old habits die hard."

"Clearly."

They each snickered knowingly at the subject of Blake's last retort as she shook his hand before glancing at the amphitheater.

"They'll have put two and two together by now since we've been gone for some time," Blake observed as she turned to the building.

"I doubt they'll consider us much longer," Seul replied smugly as he hopped off the seat and began walking back, "That Ice Queen and your love interest will be going at it in the arena any minute now..."

Blake deadpanned as she began running after the boy into the amphitheater, "WHAT."

* * *

**A/N: And another chapter goes into the books! Once again, schedules are crazy in life right now and I'll be doing my best to find a solid balance between my family and friends / responsibilities / hobbies. Which means, I'll be trying to keep updates to once a week at the very least :) I hope you liked the chapter! And as always, reviews help so much, so if you have an idea or critique, I'm all ears!**

**Blake and Seul. Yep, they've met before. Wanna read more about that? Well, you can find the prequel to Chronicle in my profile, _The Gale and The Nightshade_, currently being authored by our very own ImSoAwesome!**

**In any case, feel free to also leave a fave and follow if you haven't already cuz your support is always really appreciated! :) So I'll see you guys next chapter, where I'm thinking many of you have already figured out who will be participating in the opening match ;)**

**Also, next chapter I'll begin responding to reviews again in my author's notes - it's a habit I rather miss, so I'll start doing it again... Jimmy Fallon Thank-You-Note style! :D hehe**

**And as always, Happy Reading!**


	64. Vol 2-18: The Contender

**A/N: Long time no see, I know... Bah, writing is tough these days :/ You may notice that the stand-alone Volume 1, _The Valean War_, is doing alright, and I'd say that _Infernal-Sky_'s recommendation is indeed paying off! My thanks once again to him, and some of you may also notice that I'm going back (yet again) to make grammatical and minor story changes in this fic as well. It's mostly for structure and to give the whole thing a more "Online Novel" feel :) Anyways, I hope you like it, and Chapter 18 starts now!**

* * *

_**The Contender**_

* * *

"There you are. Took you long enough~" Yang remarked off-handedly, a tinge of relief gracing the edge of her words as the Faunus girl rejoined her team at the stands.

She knew Blake had her past with the White Fang, and had seen what Seul could be capable of... she was more glad than anything that each had returned to the amphitheater in one piece.

"Don't worry, things went... better than expected," Blake replied flatly, realizing that her partner had figured out what she was up to, before glancing at the boy who sat a few rows in front of her with his Dorme peers and sighed, "What did we miss?"

"Nuthin," Ruby chirped nonchalantly, trying to seem vaguely uninterested in anything until, "So! Uh... What were you and Seul talkin about?"

"Was it really that obvious?" The ravenette asked flatly.

"Well, you and Seul _did_ come back at the same time..." The young leader replied with an almost disappointed pout.

Blake made a mental note to be more careful next time. Though she doubted that a 'next time' would ever be necessary.

"Don't worry Rubes, it was nothing, sheesh!" Yang exclaimed good-naturedly in response, tussling Ruby's hair playfully before turning her attention back to her partner, "But yeah, they just announced Weiss and Sun as the next contestants and should be called at any m-"

_For the upcoming match, we invite Weiss Schnee and Sun Wukong to the arena._

"Welp, there ya go!" the blonde brawler concluded with a chuckle as the two contestants entered the arena from below.

Walking together, Sun nervously leaned towards the heiress as they neared the arena center, "Hey uh, no hard feelings, right?"

Weiss, sincerely taken aback at the strange question, turned to look at the Faunus-boy, "About what?"

"You knowww..."

Weiss shook her head with an increasingly annoyed expression at Sun's repeated gestures towards her team in the stands, "Um, _no_. I _don't_ know."

"Well... me and Blake... I uh, I meant what I said about she and I going out. And knowing you guys are pretty tight in team RWBY and all, I was hoping to get - you know - your blessing on this..."

"And you've-" Weiss began slowly, only to be interrupted.

"Already talked to Ruby and Yang about it while Blake was gone just now. Yep."

'Hm. This one acts quickly,' she thought to herself in amusement, nearly about to give her consent before suddenly cutting herself short.

She and Team RWBY _were_ 'tight', in Sun's terms, and she had come to regard them as sisters that she would try her utmost to care for given any and all situations. Didn't this situation count as well? Could she possibly condone a relationship, and possible future union in_ marriage, _between her esteemed teammate and this... recently reformed vagabond!? How would she even know that this young man could protect Blake from danger in the future?

"Hmm," the heiress hummed conteplatively as the Headmaster took the mic once more, "I'll allow it if you can prove your worth, Wukong. Honestly, I'm still not quite sure about how I feel about you!"

"Alright," Sun acquiesced, excitement evident in his eagerness to prove himself, "What do I have to do?"

_This match will be judged by Classic Tournament rules - first contestant whose aura drops to the red is eliminated. Are you both ready?_

Nodding her head at the Headmaster while the two soon-to-be opponents took their places, Weiss smirked mischievously as she unhooked her rapier, "Simple. Defeat me in this duel."

Sun deadpanned at the terms, "Wait... What?"

_Beep_.

He barely had a chance to take out his weapon from under his shirt before having to block against the flashing streak which was the tip of Weiss' blade. With a satisfied smirk, the heiress continued her assault on the surprised Faunus-boy before finishing a double-touch sequence with a powerful lunge.

"Yipes!" Sun cried out as he narrowly missed the rapier that poked a hole through his shirt.

But now having calmed himself and regained his bearings, Sun regripped his staff and halted her forward assault with stronger defensive counters. Grunting with the effort, Sun continued blocking Weiss' rapier strikes with twirls and ripostes of his bō staff and its consecutive aura blasts with every impact until he began taking the upper hand.

"His staff's two impact points compared to Weiss' single blade... I dunno how long she'll hold out," Neptune mumbled next to a very engaged Velvet who was following every strike with a studious eye.

"Oh no, Weissy-chan will definitely come out of this on top!" She replied resolutely, a dainty pat on her partner's shoulder being her best attempt at reassurance.

Neptune turned to face her with a small smirk, "You just say that because she's your favorite fighter in all of Beacon."

"No," she countered with a chuckle, "I say that because she hasn't even started using her Dust yet."

And at that moment, Weiss slashed down with Myrtenaster in the arena on Sun's weapon in a horizontal guard, the two students locked in place before Sun furrowed his brows in confusion.

"Uh... Why are you smiling?"

Weiss' smile turned into a grin as the light between them became tinged red from the runes growing on her blade.

"Because this will almost be _too_ easy."

_BOOM!_

The the powerful explosion being directed outwards by Weiss' semblance, the Monkey-Faunus was thrown back several yards to the excitement of the crowds, the dazzling display leaving tendrils of flames around the arena grounds as the smug heiress resumed her combat stance. Sun, however, didn't bother closing the ground between them as he separated his weapons into Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang.

"Hah! That should teach anyone still thinking of calling me Ice Queen," Weiss muttered as she readied her next attack, her sword glowing yellow with its next dust round to end the match.

Sun, looking down as he stood with both nun-chucks hanging from his side, had surprisingly heard her and responded, "Yeah. About that, there's something I've been meaning to tell you..."

Her eyes narrowed as his grip tightened around the triggers of his shotgun-chucks, a small but undeniable smirk growing on his face.

_BAMBAMBAMBAM!_

And suddenly firing both weapons at the surprised heiress with fast Gun-chuck twirls from a distance, Sun started jumping around Weiss' intermittent Fire Dust attacks between her own flips and deflections of his bullets in the arena as he broke out into song.

"Let it gooooo~ Let it gooo-ooo!~ The cold never bothered me anywayyyyy!~"

"That's not even how it _goes!_" Weiss yelled as she used a speed glyph to dash away from another hail of bullets, adding to herself in a low tone, "Oh, how I've come to _loathe_ that song..."

"What did you say, Elsa? Would you like to build a snow-maaan?~"

At the distant Sun's unexpected response to what she thought was a low whisper, Weiss growled and readied her rapier as he landed several yards away and began spinning his weapons, firing another volley of projectiles at the heiress.

But not bothering to move out of the way, Weiss held out her hand and rapier and cast a blue gravity glyph to catch the bullets in its field, whipping the glyph and bullets around herself like a giant lasso and flinging the barrage of Sun's own projectiles back at him.

"Hey no fair!" He cried out as the bullets caused a sizable explosion in the arena where he had been standing a moment ago, prompting him to revert his weapon back into staff form.

Now at opposite ends of the arena once more, they stared each other down until a fleeting sensation made Weiss look down at herself. Around her legs, sides, and even cuffs, it seemed several bullets had managed to graze her during Sun's attempts to musically distract her, a fact which surely had depleted her aura. Looking back up at her opponent with a scowl, she wasted no time in exacting revenge with hostile volition.

_SHHHINNNG!_

Loud clashes of metal were now rebounding off every corner of the amphitheater as Weiss' blade made repeated contact with Sun's staff, the subsequent speed of her strikes making it nearly impossible for him to find an opening to re-enter the offensive as the arena grounds lit up with flashes of blue, red and yellow light from the Dust and aura-enhanced blows.

Being continuously pushed back, Sun was then helpless to defend against Myrtenaster's violet charge, the potency of the dark Dust making the blade nearly black as Weiss stuck it against his weapon with considerable force, sending him flying back into the wall. Emerging from the small crater, he tried to re-engage her, but only to find himself blasted back into another section of the wall by another Dust-enhanced blow from the blade.

"That's gotta hurt," Neptune mentioned as he winced next to a nodding Velvet in the stands.

Weiss couldn't help a brief chuckle when she saw him emerge yet again, knowing that his aura couldn't take much more of a beating and that her violet Dust would ensure her victory at this rate, "I admire your resolve, Wukong!..."

As he neared her with a slight limp, his aura still helping him recover as quickly as it could, she continued as she lifted Mytenaster for its final strike, "But it ends he-"

Weiss was cut short when he unexpectedly dashed at her with surprising speed, catching her arm in mid-swing and ramming the butt of his staff into her abdomen, the resulting aura explosion sending her flying back several yards as the audience gasped in surprise.

"Sorry, but... you said... this was for... your blessing," Sun lightly panted as he made his way over to the downed heiress who still seemed to be struggling to get up.

He waited for her to stand, and with two panting students now facing each other, the aura of each in a deep yellow in this sudden death standoff, Weiss smirked and slowly began to nod.

"Truly impressive, Wukong... I haven't been so close to a loss since my bout with Davin," she began, trying to catch her breath between phrases, "But I'm afraid I'm going to have to apologize as well."

"For what?" Sun asked, having failed to notice the light blue charge that had been growing on Myrtenaster the whole time.

_FLASHHH!_

Now strutting up to the frozen block of ice that encased Sun, Weiss sheathed her rapier as she directed herself to his frozen form, "Because it seems I've put your plans of wooing my teammate..." she grinned as she paused for effect, "...On ice?"

And with that, she produced a pair of golden aviators from the inner lining of her jacket and put them on, crossing her arms in a total victory pose as the audience began to cheer her loudly and Ozpin appeared on stage.

"Hey! How'd she get my shades!" Yang cried out in the stands as she checked her pockets and realized they weren't there.

"Doesn't matter anymore," Blake hedged while trying to hide her laughter, having heard everything said in the arena with her enhanced Faunus senses, "Besides, I think she's earned them..."

_And the match winner, by means of immobilization, is Weiss Schnee. Congratulations!_

* * *

A minute or two later, Weiss and a very cold Sun exited the arena to a group of utterly amused friends.

"C-C'mon! You've n-never been beat before, and I didn't even get a chance to agree to the terms!" Sun explained as he followed her to the middle of the group shivering.

Of course, the shivering stopped and was replaced with a warm growing blush when a slender arm wrapped itself around him and a head leaned on his shoulder. He didn't have to turn to see who it was.

"Are you alright?" Blake whispered as she held on just a little tighter, some concern evident on her otherwise enchanting features.

"I am now, thanks," Sun whispered back despite the growing smiles on their friends around them before speaking up to the heiress, "Besides, wouldn't me going out with your teammate make me and you friends?"

"No."

The heiress' flatly rapid reply had many in the group taken aback, both Sun and Blake almost hurt by the response as well.

"Then... would it make us enemies?" he asked dejectedly.

"No."

At that, the monkey-faunus' expression changed to one of genuine curiosity as he let his arms fall, his hand somehow finding its way into Blake's hand in the process, "Well what would we be then?"

Weiss sighed as a mischievous smirk finally broke through on her face.

"_Even_, Wukong. We'd be even."

A moment in total silence passed as teams RWBY, JNPR, VNDS and the Dorme fighters reached the same conclusion, several deadpanned expressions slowly making their way towards Sun's teammate who sheepishly began to scratch the back of his head.

"Yeahhh... I guess we were gonna tell you guys eventually..."

Another moment of silence. And then Yang began to laugh.

"Hah! It's about time~ And with a reveal like that, I gotta give it to ya, Ice Queen - you've come a looong way since initiation!"

"That's _right_," Weiss agreed with a grin as she took Neptune's hand, put on Yang's shades once more, and turned with him to head back to the seats, concluding as she held an arm up and pointed down at the shades while the new couple walked away, "And for the record, I'm _definitely_ keeping these!"

"Wha-! Grr..." Yang growled, flames erupting around her as she began moving forward to take her shades back by force when Sun held her back by her arm.

"Don't worry, Yang. Let it go- OOF!"

Looking down at a hunched-over Sun after having elbowed him in the side, the red-eyed Yang deadpanned, "Were you seriously about to sing that song?"

Sun coughed as he looked back up at her and recovered himself, "I _wasn't_..."

_For the next match, we invite Cyrus Fergusson and Warren Peece from Atlas Academy to the arena._

"Well then, birds an' blokes, looks like it's time to put on the suit!" Cipher announced as he threw down his suitcase and stepped into its open side, the students watching in awe as every metal segment mecha-shifted over his body.

May saluted him as the final tiny metal bits began expanding over his head, "Welcome back, Iron Cipher!"

And with a subtle _clank_, the faceplate fell over his head and he saluted his teammates before blasting off into the arena.

The audience cheered as the Dorme warrior made a few airborne rounds while playing hard rock from the suit's external speakers before landing in front of an unimpressed Glynda on the platform. Giving a final bow to the audience, he then hopped off and took his place next to his opponent.

"Well, at least it makes for good television," Ironwood mused from above next to Ozpin.

Miss Goodwitch merely sighed before taking the mic again.

_This match will be judged by Classic Tournament rules - first contestant whose aura drops to the red is eliminated. Are you both ready?_

The other kid nodded in affirmation while Cyrus saluted happily, "Right-o!"

_Very well. The match will begin shortly._

Behind the mask, Cipher turned and narrowed his eyes at his opponent, sizing him up before the signal sounded. The kid had medium-length black hair that fell just over his shoulders and an olive complexion with sharp features that gave him an overall air of danger. Other than that, he wore the Atlas uniform but without the belt, tie and vest, his jacket hanging open as he took his place on the other end of the arena.

"How are we on our scanners, luv?" He asked as he checked his transmitters.

'_They'll take another moment to boot up, but as long as you're careful, there shouldn't be an issue._'

"Then balls to the wall, Gabe! The suit worked on those Grimm buggers, but I'm a bit apprehensive on our chances against one o' these chaps. Heh, even this one... looks like he thinks he's the big cheese..."

"_Oi there!_" The cryptic now spoke up, his suit making his voice audible to the outside, "_Looks like we got a real action man, 'ere! No weapons or anythin'! Ya do have a weapon, aye?_"

No response from the young man.

"_Er... Anything? Bits and bats? A Birmingham screwdriver, maybe?_"

"What's a-" Ren began to ask in the stands before Seul, May and Jaune finished for him in unison.

"It's a hammer."

"I don't think he has enough room in those holsters for a hammer..." Nora observed as she was the first to notice the X-shaped scabbards on Warren's back.

In the arena, the kid only chuckled lowly as the signal went off.

_Beep_.

Slowly reaching up behind his back, the Atlesian contestant pulled out dual sais - one of them completely a pearly white and the other, gunmetal gray - brandishing them in the arena lights before leveling them in a pointed stance at Cipher. However, the cryptic merely laughed at the sight, much to his friends' surprise.

"_Ahaha! Wait wait, don't tell me yer also a mutant ninja turtle too, eh?_"

'_Uh, Cy... I don't think we wanna anger an aura-user at the moment..._' Gabriel's in-helmet transmission began with a sense of caution to the cryptic.

"No worries, I'm just stallin' while you get these bloody scanners up and runnin'," he replied light-heartedly.

'_Well about that. Preliminary scans are in, and this one's a little different. A lot like his academic associate, Terra, if I'm not mistaken._'

"Wot? The readings are very strong or somethin'?"

'_No. They're minimal. I think he's hiding his high cards like Terra did... And judging by his aural scans, this guy's no joke._'

"Duly noted, luv. I'll neutralize with extreme prejudice."

And without a second thought, he readied both quad-barreled machine guns mounted on each forearm and went to work, the heavy gunfire pelting the arena as they chased the Atlesian that began dodging the bullets with impressive speed.

"Told ya that bloke'd be quicker than a drop o' the hat."

'_Yes, I know,_' Gabriel continued, '_Try to get in front of him with gunfire from your leading forearm, that should do the trick._'

"Well then, gun's the word, yeah?"

_RA-TA-TA-TA-TA-TA-TA!_

And making the necessary adjustments, Cipher followed his opponent standing from the center of the arena with the machine guns, Warren now moving fast enough to run along the side of the walls around the arena itself. But just when the cryptic was about to trap him between the two lines of fire, he reached a particularly strong lamplight shining into the arena and jumped in between it and Cipher's line of sight, disappearing in the iron cryptic's moment of temporary blindness.

"Where'd he go?" Cyrus asked within the helmet, frantically turning in his attempts to find his opponent, "I don't see-"

_SHIIINNG!_

And in a split second, he looked down to see both guns sliced clean off his forearms just as Warren reappeared in front of him. Suddenly finding himself dodging the repeated slashes of his opponent's grey sai, he quickly tried to make sense of the situation.

"Status window!"

**AMM - EN**

[ ]** \- **[ ]  
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"Wot?!" the cryptic cried out in disbelief, "Took out most o' me energy in just one hit!?"

'_Cy_,' Gabriel's voice now came through trembling with worry, '_Those guns were made with adamantium, HOW was he able to-_'

"O Great Oum," he whispered to himself as he got a good look at the blade he narrowly missed while it slashed right by him, "That weapon is adamantium, too! We're gonna have to launch our lil' party trick early, luv!"

'_Arming repulsor beams now!_'

And with both slim appendages flexing over his shoulders, two metallic barrels pointed at the contestant before he realized the danger.

_BLAM BLAM!_

Two direct hits from the blazing blue light beams sent Warren flying back into the arena wall, many of the audience, including Ironwood, now having stood up to see whether the young man could come back from that.

But in a flash of light, the kid was out and speeding toward the cryptic.

"Hardy chap that one," Cyrus hedged as he readied himself for another discharge, "But it's about time we popped his clogs."

'_W-Wait, you're not gonna kill him, are you!?_'

The cryptic's brows furrowed at the sudden unexpected voice.

"Er, Jaune, that you?"

'_Jaune!_' Gabriel yelled in their now three-way conversation, '_Get off the line right now or so help me, I'll come over there and end you all myself!_'

"No time! _Snuff it, Rafael!_" Cipher yelled as the repulsor weapons locked on once more just as the sai-wielder was about to reach him.

_BLAM BLAM!_

For a moment, all Cipher could see was smoke surrounding him from the proximity of the sizable explosion, and as he turned around to find whether his opponent was still standing, he couldn't help a small chuckle.

"Heh, well then. Looks like we've won ourselves a spot in the next-"

_SHHHUNK!_

"Aaaargh!"

'_CY, WHAT JUST HAPPENED!?_'

The cryptic grunted in pain as he and the suit were hoisted up as one, propped on a thin silver blade that had been jammed into his shoulder socket and missing his armpit by less than an inch.

"I'm sorry, what were you saying, holmes?" The Atlesian spoke softly with an almost sinister tone into the side of Cipher's helmet, a strange accent evident in his speech.

"_Oi_..." Cyrus eked out with the effort, "_I think you can ease up on that blade now, yeah? Ye can poke an eye out with that thing..._"

"Heh. No aura, no semblance... qué chiste..." He continued as he stuck in the blade further, drawing blood from the pained cryptic's arm, "You don't belong here, ese. But be glad this is just a little sparring match and not the field, cuz being a Hunter ain't no joke."

"_Rgh! Right-o!_" the cryptic growled as the dust began to settle, "_Well I'll do you the service... ack!... of giving you the victory... as soon as ye pull that out!_"

"Whatever you say, muchacho."

And pulling out the blade just as the two became visible, all the crowds could now see was the Atlesian contestant standing over a downed iron cryptic as the latter of the two tried to stand. No sooner did he do so when he bowed to the sai-wielder, projecting his voice to the amphitheater.

"_I hereby concede victory to Warren Peece of Atlas._"

A moment of stunned silence befalling the arena, the audience only watched as a surprised Glynda appeared on the platform and took the mic.

_Very well, match victory by concession goes to Warren Peece. Congratulations! This ends the day's matches, and tomorrow we shall continue with the quarterfinals. You may all be dismissed._

And as the audience began to clap and cheer for the victorious Atlas student, Ozpin looked over to the smug General with some curiosity.

"A student manages to bypass several lines of weaponry that slayed _hundreds_ of Grimm in the Valean War and proceeds to take the match in merely a few strikes?"

Ironwood merely returned his fellow Headmaster's gaze with an even glare of his own, "My students are trained both in aural and military battle tactics, this one being one of the most promising my academy has to offer. Like I said..."

The General looked back down into the arena as the young man bowed to the still-cheering audience.

"He is quite the Contender."

* * *

"Are you alright? How bad is the damage?" Jaune asked as the cryptic tried to disengage his suit outside the arena.

"I'm right as rain... Agh... Most of the damage is in the ol' Fergusson pride, that's all," he retorted light-heartedly as he winced in pain from his motions, May's eyes widening a bit when she noticed the gash on his shoulder.

"Big sis will _not_ be happy when she sees that..."

The cryptic chuckled nervously, "Heh, I'd wager this is wot happens when an office wallah like me gets into this line of work... I must be off me trolley, eh?"

"You did fine, Cyrus," Seul remarked softly, putting a reassuring hand on the cryptic' good shoulder, "It's just a scratch. Though you should be more careful next time - guns can't solve everything."

"Of course, mate!" Cyrus exclaimed in a sudden epiphany, throwing his case down to begin re-engaging his suit, "There's work to be done! Improvements to be made! I must return to Dorme to get this barmy brill all sorted out!"

"And some medical attention while you're at it," Jaune remarked as Pyrrha and Nora approached the group carrying both large guns that had been severed, "And you'll be needing these, too."

As the familiar metallic structure grew around the cryptic's body, Cyrus turned and gave a final grin to the white knight before the faceplate closed over his head.

"_Thanks, mate. I've already got a plan or two for those heavenly beauties as well!_"

May and Seul then checked their scrolls and traded a glance before the young Arc turned to her brother, "And Jaune, I think we'll head back with him... with Gabriel hanging out more at Flynn's Arcade and Rowenna shut in her room as always, I think mom and dad could use the company... even from Seul here," she finished with a chuckle.

"Very funny. Don't drag me into this," the boy retorted with a smirk as he nudged away May's attempts to poke him on the side, "I just need to go so I can be sure Gabe doesn't kill Cyrus for getting himself into this."

"B-But, you guys will be back, right?" Ruby suddenly asked from beside the group, the boy turning and looking for her signature silver eyes before nodding with a small smile.

"Of course. Besides, we got classes here next semester, remember?"

"And don't worry, we'll be watching the broadcast from back home, so we won't miss a thing!" May added with an adorable grin.

And so, much to Seul's surprise, teams VNDS and JNPR came in to give the three Dorme fighters large hugs goodbye, the boy stiff as a post as Nora, Pyrrha and Velvet gave him quick hugs in succession. And though Ren and RWBY had stayed back and contented themselves with a wave or handshake goodbye, the boy barely had time to let his small blush die down before he suddenly found himself standing across a very quiet crimsonette.

"You really are coming back, right?" She asked quietly, looking down as she held both hands behind her back and absently kicked at the dirt in front of her shoe.

"...Of course."

He didn't get a chance to add more when in a sudden flurry of rose petals he found himself trapped in a large bear hug. Pulling her head back to look at him, Seul could tell the rosy blush on her cheeks likely matched his in their proximity... but those eyes... he realized he could never really get enough of them...

"Heh, sorry. I do that sometimes," she meekly commented as she let go of him and stepped back, the other students finishing their own goodbyes around them.

"Oh uh, it's fine," Seul mumbled as he scratched the back of his head, "But I'll be back, alright? Just take care of Jaune for me... You know the crazy things he gets himself into sometimes."

"Okay!" She replied with an ear-to-ear grin before May called out to him.

"Alright, Seul! The transport leaves in a few minutes, let's get to it!"

"_If you blokes don't mind, I'll be taking the Cipher Express! Cheerio!_" Cipher exclaimed before saluting to the group and taking off.

The rest of the students waved their final goodbyes as May and Seul departed before beginning to make their way towards the dorm building, everyone talking amongst each other about the day's matches and what to expect from the next day's possible match ups. However, Yang was suddenly held back just as the teams reached the door.

"We were going to talk about yesterday?"

Turning to give an affirmatory nod to her fellow blonde, Yang called out to her sister, "Heya Ruby! Don't wait up for me, I gotta take care of something real quick, okay?"

"No problem, Yang!"

And with that, Yang and Jaune were left outside the building as the afternoon went on, the remaining crowds making their way back to their respective rooms as the two began walking through the school.

Eventually, they made their way to the other side of the amphitheater and found a few empty wrought iron coffee tables where students could study outdoors. Being the place he and Pyrrha had talked about their new relationship all those months before, he knew it was both secluded and appropriate for the conversation that he and the blonde brawler were about to have.

He then held a seat out for Yang, motioning for her to sit as he took his seat across the table and spoke up, "Firstly, Pyrrha knows we're having this conversation, so there's no need to worry about the teams missing us while we talk about-"

"How did you know about the dreams," Yang interrupted as she angrily sat back in her seat with arms crossed, her usual mask of contentment now discarded, "Do you have _any_ idea how much it hurt to see the things I did!?"

Jaune sighed as he realized what she must've meant, "I see... Let me guess. You saw war."

Her brows still furrowed, Yang replied flatly, "Yes."

"And you saw a man that might look like me."

"Yes."

"...And you saw a man that might look like Vin."

Yang's expression softened just a bit.

"Y-Yes..."

"Yang," Jaune continued softly as he leaned forward, resting both arms on the table, "Everything you saw last night wasn't a dream... They were _memories_. Of something that happened a very long time ago."

"The Great War?" Yang asked in surprise.

"That's right. Those two men were the Light and Dark ones of the Unbalanced who were able to neutralize the Grimm Commander and win the war... at the cost of their lives," Jaune looked down, slowly shaking his head as he ran a hand through his hair, "And I'm pretty sure that's how Vin got the idea of taking out Darovit's hordes back at Landfall Ruins - he had been having the same dreams, too."

Yang could only blink at the pained white knight, his features now seemingly weighed down with generations of hardships before she could speak again, "But... But Vin never told me he was going through anything like that!"

"Becuase he and I promised to keep it between ourselves," Jaune continued, steeling his voice as he looked back at the brawler, "Our trials. Our problem."

"Then why am _I_ having these dreams?"

"I'm not sure..." Jaune mused as he looked up at the reddening afternoon sky, "How exactly did you bring Davin back from the Turning?"

Yang looked down at her hands and shrugged, "I dunno, really. I did what I'd done to unlock his aura and pulled him out of it, I guess..."

"Hmm, then there's no doubt your auras mixed at least a little in the process. That could've been extremely dangerous, Yang," The knight cautioned sternly, "Darovit's aura could've taken over you, too..."

"Who knows. Maybe in a weird way, it did," she replied, pulling her hair in front of her and running her hands through the golden locks which had in two occasions already turned black for no explainable reason.

Jaune scratched his head at the possibility, "Well it'd definitely explain quite a bit. Maybe your natural aura running so low back in the arena triggered the secondary auras buried within... It could be what triggered the transformation."

Yang sighed as she let her hair fall, "Maybe. But this memory stuff still doesn't explain what happened after I fell into the Trace."

At that, Jaune's brows shot up in surprise, "After falling _into_ the Trace?"

"Yeah. Didn't that happen to you guys, too?"

Jaune turned to face her, his full attention on whatever her response would be to what he said next, "No Yang, never. What happened to you?"

Yang, seemingly surprised and taken aback at the intensity of Jaune's words, then told him everything from the moment she woke up in the hospital room to the moment she was shot.

"It was weird. I had never heard of the place or those people... But it all seemed so real. I mean, it makes sense that it couldn't have been just a dream," Yang concluded while turning a quizzical gaze to her fellow blonde, "But how could that have been a _memory?_"

Jaune let his head fall in both hands as he ran through every possibility in his mind, "I've no idea... it's impossible! It doesn't make sense that it's a memory from before he came to Beacon, or else he and I would've seen it as well. But it can't be from _after_ the war either since he's... you know..."

"You don't need to say it," Yang retorted flatly, her eyes flickering red for just a moment before she leaned back on her seat and looked at the sunset, "Who'd have thougt it? Davin Arc, the ghost that just won't leave me alone even though his body's long gone..."

Furrowing his brows, the knight turned a suspicious gaze to the brawler, "_What_ did you just say?"

Somewhat surprised, Yang looked back at him and replied, "Who'd have thought it?"

"Right after that."

"Davin Arc."

"Who told you that?" He asked in disbelief, losing feeling in his body as Yang replied.

"_He_ did. That's how he introduced himself in the dream."

Jaune could only gape in shock at her words, and finally composing himself, found it in him to ask, "A-And... Did he ever mention anything like that to you while he was still with us?"

"Pfft, no! It's not like he was actually ever related to you!" Yang quipped with a laugh... a laugh, however, that began dying down as she noticed the color draining from the knight's face, "He... _isn't_ related to you... right?"

"Yang. It was one of the last things he told me before he took on Darovit..."

Her eyes widened in realization, slowly shaking her head as the white knight concluded.

"...Davin really _is_ an Arc."

"B-But, that's impossible! Even if it _was_ a memory of his from the time he remembered who he was, how could it have been in a place that none of us have even _heard_ of, especially after that explosion! I mean, he's... he's..." Yang stuttered, tears threatening to well up in her eyes.

"_Unless_..." Jaune interrupted, reaching an internal epiphany and turning back to Yang with excitement building as he went on, "Well it can't be progressive... you got the whole dream at once... Yang! I think there's a way we can figure this out!"

"W-What are you talking about?" The brawler asked dejectedly.

"I think these really _are_ memories from Vin, and somehow the Trace is keeping you both connected through the aura you both share!"

"But how can that even be possible!" Yang burst out in flame as she stood and slammed a fist on the table, unwilling to let herself believe the optimistic knight.

"The Trace isn't just a storage device... It's a transport device, too! And I think somehow, somewhere, there's a chance that maybe - just _maybe_ \- Vin could've survived!"

And as if she couldn't believe he would've actually said those words, the flames died down and she slumped back down in her seat incredulously, taking a few deep breaths to fight down the growing emotion.

"That's just speculating. How could we know that for sure?"

"I can't say," Jaune continued, tapping his chin in thought, "Back when Vin and I had the dreams, it was practically every night, but only because they were progressive. Your connection is clearly different - _stronger_ \- so you'll have to wait and see if you have another dream. It can take a week, it can take a month, but if you can wait... I'm sure he'll find a way to let you know for sure!"

And to his surprise, Yang chuckled as a single tear fell from her eye and she pulled out a medallion from her pouch. Looking over the engravings on the front and back, she stated, "You know, it's funny. He told me something a lot like that right before he went to the ruins for the last time."

She sighed as she clutched the medallion to herself and clenched her eyes shut, a few more tears falling in consequence, "I don't wanna make myself hope for the impossible, Jaune... but what you've said makes it really seem like it isn't as impossible as I once thought. I'll... I'll wait."

Jaune smiled at the brawler, still reeling from the new possibilities himself, "That's good. I'm glad I could help."

He then stood up, stretching his arms over his head as the final rays of light fell around them, tinging everything in gold.

"Heh, dusk. This was his favorite time of day," Jaune commented as he smiled at the light that danced across his armor and turned to the brawler, "and if there's anything you should know about the Arcs, Yang, it's that we don't give up easy! We're stubborn like that. And if Vin's alive, I'm sure that wherever he is, he's trying very hard to get back."

"Well, that's what he told _me_," Yang replied with a smirk, "and maybe he really _is_ helping all those people along the way - Rick and his group, I remember he called them - which is definitely like him. I just hope he's alright."

"Me too. C'mon, we should get going. You and me are going to need some serious rest for tomorrow!" Jaune offered, the brawler happily obliging after wiping away a few remaining tears and standing as well.

Of course, as they walked back together and Yang put Davin's medallion back in her pouch, she turned to the white knight with narrowed eyes.

"And for the record, if you ever breathe a word about this side of me to anyone, I will seriously beat you so bad your kids will come out black and blue."

"You have my word," Jaune replied with a chuckle, "But I'm pretty confident they'll come out white and gold!"

"Seriously, black and blue."

"White and gold!"

"Ugh... Don't even get me started," Yang conceded with a facepalm as they finally entered the dorm building, but not before delivering a decent jab to the knight's bare arm.

"OW!" Jaune yelped as he saw the mark already forming, "Hah! Even my bruise is white and gold!"

"Trust me, it's blue and black. You're looking at it in the wrong light," Yang retorted before giving him a final wink and grin, then walking down the hall and leaving him to tend to his newest injury alone.

"That really did hurt... Meh, it's still white and gold."

* * *

**A/N: White and gold? Blue and black? Ehehe I couldn't help it :) The dress really is blue and black, people! Anyway, to avoid any lost friendships over this debate, I'll just get back to the story at hand ;)**

**I really hope you guys like the chapter and that a few important questions are being raised and answered! Now that I'm so close to finishing Volume 2, I really can't wait to get started on Volume 3 and introduce the awesome OCs you've all submitted! More info to come! Feel free to leave a fave and follow, and reviews are always appreciated :D speaking of which, I think it's time for some thank you notes!**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! And I'm guessing you figured out the "love interest" part, heh :) I'm really sorry I wasn't able to get this chapter out sooner, life really has been hectic! It's a good hectic, but still, I'll be doing what I can to get chapters out more often.**

***ThunderStruck60: Thank you for the help! And to answer your question and Lazercorn's as well, they will indeed continue Season 3 of the show as planned. Kerry and Miles are working on the scripts as we speak :)**

***ImSoAwesome: Thank you! And yes, I'll be waiting for you to send me the next chapter heh :)**

***joae12: Thank you! And I hope you like this update, too! :)**

***SpanishBulldog63: Thank you! And heck yeah she is! :D I'm glad someone got the reference!**

***Matthew: I hope this chapter answers your question ^.^**

***Dikastes: Thank you! I intend to see this story through to the end and awesome reviews like yours really help :D**

***TheBluePsychoticStrategist: Thank you! Hehe, that was a good reference ;)**

***KnightWriterRLK: Thank you! I had lots of fun writing it and am glad you liked it :)**

***Dj182: Thank you! And I have no idea about this Wind Rose stuff people keep talking about... :3**

***Mattysteel: FINE... I wrote more chapters X)**

***LoveGlutton: Thank you! And I hope my story continues satiating your LoveGluttany! :D hehe, see what I did there?**

**Anyways, phew, I've really gotten backed up with reviews here! I mean, _Cronicle_ is #9 in most-reviewed RWBY fics published in the last six months and #24 in RWBY fics published in the last year. Wow! :D Thanks so much for your support and stay tuned for the quarterfinals next chapter!**

**And as always, Happy Reading!**


	65. Vol 2-19: The Might of Arkos

**A/N: And the next chapter is out, only two chapters left until the finale of the Vytal Tournament and Volume 2 of this fic! Took me long enough, but oh well :) Chapter 19 begins now!**

* * *

**_The Might of Arkos_**

* * *

The crowd gathered the next morning around the amphitheater, the growing hum of anticipation for the day's matches permeating the air around the Beacon students once again.

"Gotta give it to you guys, I can see why we're number three in Beacon to both your teams," Sun began coolly to the two leaders in the group.

As it was, team JNPR still had two contestants in the running as the second highest rated team in Beacon and team RWBY still had three contestants in the tournament, a fitting statistic for them as well.

"Well there were plenty of factors in all our matches that affected the results, and I think most of it was just strokes of luck... at least in my case," Jaune replied meekly, a little flustered at the reminder of their high team standings.

"Nope," Ruby quipped with a smirk, "What you do doesn't count as luck anymore, Jaune! You've really come a long way since coming here, and you can fight as well as you strategize now!"

"She has a point," Pyrrha added with a grin, "And if the events of this tournament have left you any doubts, I'm certain that your actions today may remove them all."

Before Jaune could protest, however, it was Weiss who now cut in, "Actually, Pyrrha... If I'm not mistaken, I believe it may very well be possible that you and Jaune face each other today!"

The blonde knight meeped as Pyrrha's grin grew ever wider, "Oh, that would be _grand!_"

Jaune gulped as the three teams entered the amphitheater and found their seats.

"Well, I guess we'll find out soon enough..."

For obvious reasons, sparring for the first time against the Invincible Girl, aka The Full-Metal Huntress, in a championship-match environment set his nerves on edge. The fact that the girl he may have to face - who was a seasoned veteran in these affairs and could easily handle the pressure of the situation - was his girlfriend, that's what was _really_ unsettling. But getting this far in the tournament, he had to admit that it was an eventuality that was bound to happen at one point or another.

Team RWBY sat down first, the other two teams crossing the row to take their seats further down. As he passed Yang, Jaune furtively tapped her arm to catch her attention before she sat, keeping his voice to a low whisper so as not to attract attention.

"Any dreams?"

She merely glanced at him in understanding and shook her head before taking her seat and letting him move on. No sooner did the remaining students sit when Ozpin now appeared at the platform and waited for the audience to quiet down before taking the mic.

_Good morning. We welcome you all to the Vytal Tournament quarterfinals, where some of the best upcoming fighters in all of Remnant will soon pit their weapons against each other to claim the title of victor. Now that everyone is seated, we shall now begin._

Looking down at a small tablet in his hand that replaced the usual mug of coffee, he began reading aloud.

_For the first match, we'd like to call to the arena Jaune Arc..._

Jaune froze to the spot, absent-mindedly standing at the early mention of his name and slowly turning to cross back out into the main aisle before feeling a faint tug at the hem of his hoodie. Snapping out of his temporary stupor, he was surprised to see it was the bunny-eared Faunus girl who had done so.

"Um, Jaune?"

"Yeah, what's up, Velv?" he asked with warm concern.

She seemed to fidget a bit, her ears drooping a bit until she worked up her response.

"Er, I-I know that you and Vin had a lot in common... and that those things were bringing you both closer together before Landfall..."

Jaune sighed as the familiar pang of emotion hit him at the mention of the young man. If only she knew _how_ close they had discovered their connection was...

"Yeah... I know. I still think of him a lot, too."

Nodding her head sheepishly, Velvet looked up at him with glimmering eyes, "I know you do. Continue to do so during your match, it'll give you strength. You have what it takes to win this... s-so please, do it for him."

She smiled as she patted him on the arm, his mood becoming more serene as he continued onward and glanced at Yang who simply nodded her head.

"What she said."

With a nod in return and a growing smile, Jaune then made his way down to the bottom floor, about to enter the arena before a sound from behind him caught his attention.

"Ahem..."

Turning around, his eyes widened in realization, "P-Pyrrha? Wait, I didn't hear the second person he called... Does that mean we're-?"

"No..." Pyrrha replied with a short chuckle before coyly breaking her gaze with his, "It's just that you didn't say goodbye."

"Oh."

Unable to hold back a wide smile at her implication, Jaune shook his head before approaching the blushing Spartan, gingerly lifting her chin until their eyes met once more. Thanking Monty above for the amazing partner he had ended up with, Jaune slowly closed the space between them as they each shut their eyes and shared a heartfelt kiss, each of them relishing the electric feeling upon contact that travelled throughout every nerve that could feel.

Pulling back, Pyrrha giggled as Jaune's hand brushed her face, the white knight nearly made dizzy by the incredible sensation her lips had left on his.

"B-Better?"

"Definitely," she replied as she instinctively let her cheek press deeper against his hand before taking it in both of her own, "You should probably get going. Wouldn't want to keep your next opponent waiting!"

"Good point!" He exclaimed, realizing the announcement had been made some time ago and nearly sprinting into the arena until he stopped himself just short of the entrance and turning to face his partner, "Love ya, Pyr!"

Those words never failing to flood her system with mirth, Pyrrha grinned as she waved him off to the arena, "I love you too! Keep calm and fight well!"

And with that, Jaune burst into the arena where Ozpin was waiting with a raised brow and a ghost of a smirk.

_Excellent. Our second contestant has arrived_, the Headmaster declared smugly, _This match will be judged by Classic Tournament rules - first contestant whose aura drops to the red is eliminated. Are you both ready?_

"Yes," Jaune stated resolutely before hearing a similar response from his soon-to-be opponent.

Realizing that he still didn't know who it was, he quickly turned to his side to find that it was none other than Penny herself.

"Salutations!" She announced with a grin, "I greatly look forward to our impending match!"

Jaune chuckled nervously when he heard the signal suddenly go off.

_Beep_.

'Early bell? Now that's just not _fair_,' was all that the knight could think to himself before having to dodge a twin-bladed attack from the girl's electronic blades. Recalling how Seul had managed to disarm her, Jaune focused his semblance on his sword and swung it in fluid motions to compact the air around him before slashing it out at her blades.

_WHOOSH!_

The visible razor wind shot through the air before Penny could react, but Jaune could only groan when it didn't seem to do a thing, the girl reacting by splitting her two blades into four.

"I am glad to report that after analyzing yesterday's opponent, I have made changes to my blade-handling!" she mentioned happily, "This has been most informative, as it will render future attacks of a similar nature powerless!"

Taking a better look, Jaune could see why. A faint glint of light revealed the strings she tied to her swords were now in constant motion, surely poised to dodge any future wind attacks.

And without another second to spare, the four swords converged on Jaune who had little other choice but to block with his shield while fighting back any direct attacks with his sword. He ducked as two swords whizzed over his head, blocking the third with his shield and engaging the fourth with his blade before the other three closed in at once.

"Aw c'mon!" He hissed under his breath until coming to a swift revelation, "Oh wait, I can do stuff, too!"

_VOOM! BzzBZpfffft!_

The audience collectively gasped at the brilliant white dome of Aura Jaune suddenly created, two of the swords ricocheting harmlessly against it while the third hit the dome with so much force that the weapon itself ignited with energy and quickly disintegrated.

Leaping at the girl, Jaune then swung Crocea Mors several times in her moment of hesitation, missing her due to her unexpectedly nimble dodges around his blade before being forced to engage her three blades once more. Three blades which suddenly separated once more to become six.

"You _have_ to be kidding me, she's got the Hydra of swords back there!" he exclaimed before having to block against six successive sword strikes against his shield. Each strike pushing him further into the ground, he grunted under the pressure before deploying another aura wall to get out from behind the continuous onslaught.

But unable to grant him anything more than a brief reprieve, Jaune braced himself as Penny redirected her swords from the center of the arena and sent them once more at the knight, their increased speed managing to land more and more nicks and scratches that began to whittle away at his aura despite his best efforts to block.

Penny expected the next aura blast from him which flew out with so much force that she lost two of her swords... But what she _didn't_ expect was the sudden appearance of a _second_ Jaune that swooped in for an attack from her side.

Sending a blade to counter his clone which to her moved like a strange apparition, she was even more surprised when its entire form exploded on contact, sending her flying back several feet and losing control of her remaining swords which fell around the real Jaune who stood up from behind his shield some distance away.

The audience beginning to shout in approval for his multi-faceted semblance, Jaune glanced at Sun in the stands and gave him a quick wink before the swords around him quickly retreated to Penny's vicinity. Watching as the girl got back to her feet, Jaune's shoulders now slumped as four more swords appeared from her back and they all began quickly rotating around her with a sickly green glow.

"Okay... Now _that_ just isn't fair."

_Voomvoomvoomvomvomvomvvmvmvmvmvmvm-BLAM!_

A giant green ray then blasted out of the girl's attack, creating a giant crater in the wall where Jaune was standing. _Was_ standing.

Her eyes widened as she saw a pale ghost-like version of her opponent appear next to her in the blink of an eye, poised to strike.

"Oh dear!"

With a quick swipe of her arm, she sent the eight swords raining down on the spot as his physical form met with his aural one, his shield up to block the flurry of attacks before he sped to her other side with another flair of Victor's semblance.

"He truly has a remarkable semblance," Ren stated to Pyrrha in the stands above as Jaune continued closing in to his opponent with his aura-augmented hit-and-run tactic below.

Smiling and awed herself, Pyrrha replied, "It suits him. He's well on his way to becoming a remarkable Hunter."

"Well I hope he has enough aura left," Ruby suddenly cautioned from a few seats down, catching their attention, "Because we've met Penny and I've seen her handling _way_ more swords that that!"

And as if her words were a secret hex, Jaune's team watched with bewilderment as Penny now held back her attack, eight swords now becoming sixteen as Jaune skidded to a halt and the audience fell silent at the developing standoff.

"Your abilities are most impressive!" Penny stated light-heartedly despite her mild panting, the young Arc also checking his scroll to see that his aura was halfway through the yellow, "Your semblance is truly unlike any other!"

Jaune managed a smirk as he watched the swords surrounding her simultaneously point at his direction.

"Yours too, I've never met anyone who could handle so many weapons at once!"

But with that, he deadpanned as he processed his own words... An idea now forming in his mind as his smirk grew and he hooked up his shield to his belt.

"_However_..." he now added with a low chuckle, "I must inform you, that _two_ can play at this game..."

"Wha-" Penny began, but was cut off by the white knight's sudden action of thrusting out his sword, the entire weapon glowing white before spawning sixteen aural copies of itself around him.

Of everyone in the audience, only Ruby could understand the sudden giggling of the pseudo-girl with the ability to produce a synthetic aura and her joy of meeting a worthy opponent as she threw out her hands at him, the small multitude of swords flying forward to meet his projections in a battle of mental fortitude.

_CLASHclangclackcrashkSHHKSHH..._

The symphony of clashing metal began to echo around the amphitheater as the audience moved closer to the edges of their seats, the contestants themselves each standing still at opposite ends of the arena as their armies of weapons waged a war of will between them. Above, below and beside the two opponents, pairs of swords moved forward and backward through the arena as each tried to converge their weapons on the other, every individual blade a blur of speed and force.

But as the dazzling display continued with Penny's smirk holding without an ounce of effort present in her face, it was Jaune who was beginning to show signs of fatigue, beads of sweat building on his forehead as his scowl deepened.

"It was truly a pleasure, Mister Arc!" Penny finally declared, thoroughly satisfied as he began panting and her swords inched ever closer to him, "I hope we can do this again sometime!"

And splitting sixteen into thirty-two to keep her opponent occupied, she pulled back eight of her swords and began charging her green beam cannon attack much to Jaune's dismay.

_Voomvoomvomvomvmvmvmvm-BLAM!_

The audience craning their necks or otherwise standing on their seats to see the results, it was Nora who suddenly broke the silence as Jaune limped out of the rubble.

"He's... HE'S INVINCIBLEEEEE!~"

"And he's on fire," Ruby added flatly.

"I know, right!?~"

"No Nora," she replied with growing alarm, "He's actually on _fire!_"

Which indeed was the case, a fact that Jaune quickly noticed as he looked down at his flaming pant leg and yelped in surprise.

"Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh!" He kept repeating as he pulled as much water from the air as he could with his semblance and put the fire out.

Of course, in his panic, he didn't realize how large of a waterball he'd formed to put out the fire, a large ball of liquid in the arena that left the audience slack-jawed until he threw it down, dousing the flames and also most of the arena grounds, including Penny.

Drenched as the onslaught of electronic blades came to a pause, she wordlessly held her arms out to her side, nearly shivering from the amount of water that had been dumped on her.

"Well... _That_ development was quite unexpected..."

Jaune's eyes widened as she lifted the large group of swords around herself and pointed them at the knight, weapons readied to end the match. He knew he didn't have enough aura to counter them all for much longer, so he fell back to his strategic intellect in the split second before her strike.

'Her eyes...' he noticed suddenly, 'they're looking at my leg. She's gonna try to immobilize me!'

Plan formed just as the blades began flying at him from all directions, Jaune quickly pooled his aura to his legs and leapt sideways through the air right on time. But noticing the amount of water between the floor and Penny as he soared through the air, a smirk formed on his face as the final piece of his plan came together.

"Bingo."

He stretched out his hand and sent a single electric spark at the floor before he could land.

_zzrt-ZZZTZZZRAK!_

And with the entire arena lighting up with the sheer chain reaction from the spark, Jaune landed on a dry spot and watched the swords drop, along with an unconscious Penny who promptly fell like a lead block.

He quickly rushed over to her, however, when he saw her fail to stir, and grunted under the effort of trying to sit her up in his arms.

"Oof - you're heavy for a girl your size!"

But to his relief, she slowly came to and began to open her eyes... but he could only blink in confusion as he noticed faint but discernible lines of code running down her green irises before she seemed to regain awareness and focus on him. Her eyes fell as she noticed the look on his face and became fully aware of their surroundings.

"I suppose... This would make you the third outsider to learn of my secret..." she began dejectedly as many from the audience tried to see what was happening from above them.

"No, I mean, you're fine," Jaune replied with a weak smile, "I figure Seul figured it out yesterday?"

"Yes. It seems it is more difficult to cover my true nature in combat than I had previously calculated..."

But growing into a warmer smile, he merely shook his head at the girl, "It's fine, what you can do is really amazing! Your secret is safe with me... I'll make sure Seul knows not to talk about it either."

At that, they were interrupted by Ozpin's voice blaring through the speakers, the man himself now standing at the platform.

_And the match winner is Jaune Arc. Congratulations!_

Standing up as the audience loudly applauded Jaune's victory, Penny held out a hand for him to shake, which he promptly did.

"Thank you. It has been a most enjoyable match, Mister Arc! I hope we meet again!"

"Sure," he replied with a small chuckle, "But you don't have to call me by my last name - my friends just call me Jaune!"

"..."

"Um, Penny?"

Little did he expect the gush of excitement that followed surrounding the word 'friend'.

* * *

"Three people," Pyrrha began with an amused demeanor as the three teams met up outside the arena a few minutes later, "It took _three_ people to get her off of you."

"Yeah," Neptune added as he brushed off the dust from his partly soggy jacket, "She's got a heck of a grip."

"I know what you mean," Ruby mumbled on the side despite not having helped Penny off the poor knight, Jaune being the only one who quickly understood what she must've meant.

'The third person, eh?' he thought to himself with a smirk, recalling Penny's words to mind.

Nora however, completely soaked, only started to giggle, "Well Mister Fearless Leader, you've definitely come a long way from your first day at Beacon if girls are practically throwing themselves at you now! It's like you got hit by a 3D hypno ring that'd drive the female population crazy for your new-found confidence and skills!"

Strangely enough, Ruby and Pyrrha deadpanned at the hammer-wielder and her reference while Jaune merely raised a brow in confusion.

"_New-found_ confidence?"

_Attention contestants_, Glynda's voice now rung out over the speakers, the arena just having been put back to normal, _We now call to the arena Pyrrha Nikos and May Arc._

Freezing where she stood, Pyrrha glanced at Jaune in alarm as most of the others reached the same thought.

"Oh no, May isn't here!" Velvet cried out, the first to voice the group's concern.

"What'll happen if May can't make it?" Blake asked worriedly.

"Will May have to forfeit?" Ren added cautiously.

Jaune sighed and facepalmed dejectedly at the prospect, "Oh, Mayyy..."

However, the following silence lasted for barely a second before a new voice joined the group.

"That's my name, don't wear it out!~"

Twelve heads spun in the direction of the young blonde who wore a winning smirk and was currently standing at the amphitheater entrance behind them.

Jaune deadpanned as he blew some hair that had fallen in front of his face out of the way, "May. How is it that you can take something so cheesy and make it sound adorable?"

"Maybe it's the good ol' Arc charm!" she playfully replied as she skipped over to her brother and booped him on the nose, "Besides, it seems it worked well enough for you to win over Pyrrha here~"

Suddenly overcome by a reddening blush, the Spartan in question sheepishly grinned before speaking up, "I'm glad that you made it, May. You and I will be able to have a proper match now!"

Stopping in her tracks, May's eyes widened considerably as the glow of excitement bubbled through her features and growing grin, "_Really!? _You mean I'm going to get to go against the Mistrali Champion in a match!? Ohmygosh I-I can't believe it, it's a dream come true!"

Jaune chuckled as he ruffled his sister's hair, "That's right, Mayflower. They just announced your names."

This, of course, sent the young blonde into overdrive.

"That is so so _so_ awesome! It's a good thing I went straight home yesterday then cuz I saw dad and dad saw me and then he and Gabriel were all like 'Ohmygosh why are you here' and I was like 'to come back to see you guys of course' and they were like 'but you're still in the tournament' so I was like 'oh noes' and I totally ran to the first transport I could get into and-"

"May," Jaune softly cut in while placing a hand on her shoulder, causing her endless sentence to come to a close, "Arena. Remember?"

May blinked before coming to a quick realization, "Oh right!"

And practically dragging a surprised Pyrrha by the hand, the young Arc led them into the arena as Sun quietly approached Jaune's side.

"Uh... Do all the women in your family talk like that?"

Jaune gave his answer without missing a beat.

"_Yep_."

_Very well, this match will be judged by Classic Tournament rules_, Glynda now announced as soon as the two young women took their places in front of the platform,_ first contestant whose aura drops to the red is eliminated. Are you both ready?_

The two contestants nodded eagerly, Miss Goodwitch nodding in return before concluding her statements.

_The match shall begin shortly, then._

Pyrrha and May then took a few steps back from each other, the elder of the two sizing up her soon-to-be opponent as she unhooked her weapons.

"May, I'd just like you to know that I greatly appreciate your willingness to fight against me, and I shall put my all into this match out of my respect for your honor and your family's as well."

Flashing a wide grin at her counterpart, May added with a wink, "How chivalrous. Aren't you forgetting _love_... specifically for a certain brother of mine?"

Her blush flaring for a moment as May readied Dual Fates, Pyrrha nodded faintly with a small smile, "Yes... for that reason as well. But right now, it's you and I, and I'll be honored to face you in this arena!"

"Likewise, in-law!" May shot back happily, her excitement now geared into her battle resolve.

_Beep_.

And without wasting a second, May was upon the Spartan, her orb-tipped ribbon flying out at her opponent which was blocked by Pyrrha's upheld shield. Dodging the successive gunfire from Miló, May then flung out her hook-tipped weapon from her opposite arm, turning the match into a long-ranged ordeal as she sent in orb then hook consecutively into the redhead's vicinity.

"Cunning tactic, attacking from long range!" Pyrrha called out with gusto as she narrowly dodged the hook that nearly grazed her cheek before intercepting the meteor hammer with Akoúo.

"Well I _have_ been watching you fight for four years!" May replied with a light-hearted giggle, catching her iron orb and preparing her next attack.

It was a tactic that Pyrrha, however, had grown accustomed to, having earned her second Mistrali Regional title from a young Hunter-in-training with dual-wielded spears who went by the name of Lancer.

It took only a flick of her wrist and a swipe of her arm to deflect the next hook attack with Miló and send her shield hurdling towards her opponent. Surprised by the speed of the counter-attack, May winced with the rough landing she sustained after having to make an impromptu flip over the spinning disc that was the Spartan's shield. She was even more surprised when she noticed that her meteor hammer, which was in mid-flight towards Pyrrha, almost seemed to change course as the redhead ducked back simultaneously, the orb missing her face by less than an inch.

The audience, thoroughly entertained by the acrobatic feat, had nowhere near the excitement that was growing on the young Arc as she narrowed her eyes at the Spartan with a growing smirk.

"So _that's_ what it is..."

As Pyrrha now zeroed in on her shield, May then pulled back on her hook and kept it in hand as she also pulled back her meteor hammer. Holding the ribbon of the latter in both hands, she began swinging the orb around at the highest speed she could manage before launching the deadly projectile at the Spartan.

Unable to reach her shield on time, Pyrrha sensed the incoming metal and leapt in midair, flipping around and stretching out her arm ready to guide the metal away from her with minute adjustments from her semblance.

But to Pyrrha Nikos' sudden dismay, instead of guiding the projectile away, the moment she activated her semblance the iron meteor hammer soared _towards_ her and into her abdomen.

_PLAT!_

The dull thud of metal against leather was strong enough to be heard around the arena, the audience dead silent as Pyrrha fell to the floor with the wind knocked out of her as May caught her weapon in hand.

For the first time in four years of competition... The Invincible Girl had been dealt a crushing blow.

Even Weiss could only stare in shock at the scene before her in the stands above the arena.

"What... Just... Happened."

Jaune looked at his scroll to see both girls' aura levels before replying, "I-I can't believe it... I've never seen Pyrrha's aura level drop into the yellow before!"

Down in the arena, the weakened Spartan lifted her head, still unable to lift herself completely off the floor as May idly approached while swinging her meteor hammer around.

"H-How?"

May pouted before shooting her a grin, "Mm alright, I'll tell you because I really do like you, okay? ...But please, you can stand, I will wait!"

Nodding her head, Pyrrha slowly clambered to her feet, her aura finally taking care of the pain and leaving only slight discomfort in her abdomen from the blow that easily could've broken a lesser combatant in half.

"Alright, how'd you do it?" she asked while gingerly picking Akoúo on the floor at her side, wincing with the residual discomfort as she did so.

"Process of elimination," May replied outright, "It took some time, but I know my brother could copy other people's semblances so I started tracing each semblance back to their original owner. I only had two or so left until you started manipulating Dual Fates. Then I knew!"

The Spartan smirked at her proud opponent as she spoke, "I see you've figured it out, then."

"That's right," May quipped with a wink, now brandishing her weapon with slow arcs through the air around her, "Polarity. Well then, shall we continue?"

"Oh yes," Pyrrha muttered with a smirk.

What May hadn't realized was her own mistake in having approached the ailing Spartan. Now in range for her wider arsenal of combat techniques, Pyrrha deflected the meteor hammer with her shield, May being too close to react in time as her recovered opponent butted her in the stomach with Akoúo and promptly landed a flurry of elbow and knee-based strikes on her form before performing a two-handed grapple move and throwing her to the floor over her shoulder.

The audience cheering louder and louder over the developing brawl, May came back up and engaged her opponent in hand-to-hand combat, each young woman trading blows and grunting under the effort of each strike. Though the Win Chun technique wasn't unfamiliar to Pyrrha, she realized that May's evident mastery over the fluid style was beginning to counter her more power-based attacks - the two young women now fairly bloodied due to their relentless determination to win - and so had no choice but to resort to her arsenal of finishing moves.

Taking the young Arc by surprise, Pyrrha turned and grabbed the girl's arm as it flew past her in a narrowly missed punch, bringing the younger blonde down and sending a knee into her abdomen hard enough to lift her a few feet from the ground. And leaping up after her, the Spartan placed four years of tournament experience and a lifetime of trained combat finesse into a final spinning kick that sent the girl flying across the arena.

But in the stands above, Jaune knew in the brief flash of a second in which he saw May's face that the one that was in trouble was certainly not his _sister_.

"Uh oh..."

The young blonde reached behind her tattered sash, pulling out her hook and deftly connected it to her other ribbon just before she hit the wall in an explosion of debris. But to the audience's suspense, the girl limped out, Pyrrha now picking up Miló and slowly approaching when in a sudden swift movement, May flung out her hook at blinding speed and hit home... right in Pyrrha's arm.

"I sincerely apologize for this!"

_ZZZttzzzZZrrrrstzzzRAK!_

Once again lighting the arena, May's electric attack assaulted her famed opponent with vicious tendrils of energy that cackled and tore through the air around her while whittling down what Aura she had left. Yelling in pain, Pyrrha shut her eyes in concentration, immediately sensing her dwindling aura before being struck with an impossible idea.

"Nnnyaaahhhh!" the Spartan shouted amid the roar of electricity, the artificial light from the electricity eclipsing to all but May how Pyrrha's body began to glow with Aura.

"What the-" the younger Arc began with furrowed brows until Pyrrha suddenly started to pull May closer to her by sections of the taut ribbon between them, quickly wrapping the ribbon around her arms as she did so to keep May from pulling back, "-Ack! -Ah! -What are you doing!?"

And finally yanking May to herself, Pyrrha grabbed a hold of the girl by the shoulders as May stared at her wide-eyed, the electricity continuing to pour out and surround them both.

"Pyrrha, grabbing me like this will only make the pain worse for you!" May exclaimed with worry at her evidently strained opponent, sure that the Spartan's aura would drop to the red at any moment so she could end the painful attack, "And I'm not affected by my own bio-electricity!"

"I know you're not."

Worry quickly turned to panic as May tried to struggle out of Pyrrha's grasp but to no avail, realizing that the Spartan had practically tied the two together by wrapping the metal ends of May's weapons around them.

In the stands above, Ren quickly turned to Jaune when the electric light in the arena below them actually began _pulsing_, starting off slow and getting faster and faster as everyone watched in awed suspense.

"Jaune, what's happening?"

The white knight could only stare blankly at the giant pulsing orb of light that now surrounded his sister and his girlfriend, shaking his head.

"I have... no idea."

And suddenly, the pulsing becoming so fast that it looked like a translucent ball of energy around the girls, everyone was thrown back and temporarily blinded by an incredibly bright flash of light.

_-OOOOOM!_

A ringing sound in his ears and a dull throbbing headache well underway, Jaune slowly awoke to the sound of Ruby's voice.

"W-What was that!?"

"What's going on!?" he heard Yang and Weiss asking in turn as well.

Opening his eyes wide, Jaune was surprised to find that he wasn't blind; the entire amphitheater had gone dark, many of the waking audience members murmuring and exclaiming their confusion and panic until the lights slowly but surely came back on.

"No wayyy~" Nora slowly eked out as she looked over the arena wall.

The arena itself was completely fine, no large cracks or damage like in previous rounds. But in the center of the arena, it was Pyrrha who stood over a now unconscious May.

As people slowly began to realize what had happened, Miss Goodwitch appeared on the platform.

_Well, now that we've confirmed that the broadcasting equipment is once again fully functional, we can now announce that the match winner is Pyrrha Nikos. Congratulations!_

Lifting her weapons and then the unconscious Arc, Pyrrha bowed to the applauding audience before carrying her out of the arena.

* * *

"-ay? Ma-? ...May?"

Voices finally becoming clearer around her, May regained consciousness outside of the arena amid the three worried teams, glancing to her side and seeing a few nurses walking away from the group and Velvet above her with glowing hands.

"May?"

Jaune. The owner of the voice registering in her mind, the young blonde groggily looked over at her brother, blinking a few times before producing any sound.

"Ow."

Quick to join her side was a fairly worried Pyrrha, concern evident in her eyes as she took May's hand in hers.

"I-I'm so sorry. I had never tried using my semblance that way and had no idea how powerful it would prove to be!"

But looking over at the Spartan, May merely cracked a small smirk as she replied, "Then I take it I lost. But... how?"

Taking a deep breath, Pyrrha glanced at Jaune who merely looked at her with a raised brow and motioned to his sister while taking a step back.

"Go ahead. I'd say we're _all_ pretty curious about how you did that."

Pyrrha looked around at the expectant faces around her and turned to look at May with a small smile.

"Of course. Like I said, I had never been able to try this before, but only because I had never been supplied enough power to attempt it. Until today. May, I used the energy from your bio-electric semblance to create-"

"-an EMP," Ren stated suddenly from beside the group.

"Well, yes," Pyrrha continued with some surprise, several students glancing at the stoic with similar reactions, "An Electromagnetic Pulse generated by my reversing my polarity fast enough while supplied with massive amounts of electric energy. It was the only way I could disrupt your electrical attack - your weakness, so to speak. Though it's _not_ something I'd like to try again."

"But Ren," Ruby now stated, still glancing at the stoic with furrowed brows, "How'd you know?"

"You see, it's not exactly the _first_ time I see an aura do something like that..." he replied flatly while furtively sparing a pointed glance at his girlfriend, strangely enough.

A detail which certainly didn't escape the heiress' eye.

"Wait. The Schnee Dust Company has invested _billions_ of lien trying to develop electromagnetic dust-powered weaponry for _years_, and you're saying that sort of incredible power lies within the confines of a _single_ aura!?" Weiss cried out incredulously.

He sighed before trying to reply, "Well, it turns out that-"

"-the answer is a big fat _yes!_~" Nora announced, much to the other students' surprise.

"Wait, what!?" Jaune asked in disbelief, "You mean to say that there's someone out there who can do that all on their own!?"

"Not just _anyone_... ME!~" Nora declared victoriously, eleven faces dropping - including May's - as the hammer-wielder pointed at herself dramatically.

"You've never told us about this," Pyrrha then stated with curiosity, "How is it that we've never seen you use it before?"

"Oh that's not _totally_ true," Nora replied with a grin, "Ren says I should use my semblance only against the Grimm - ever notice Magnihild getting all electricky when I smash a really big Grimm with it?~"

Jaune and Pyrrha promptly deadpanned at the memories of countless Grimm left dazed during the Valean War which Nora had left in her path for Ren to clean up after her.

"That explains so much."

"Yep! It all started when Ren and me were really little and stuff in the town where we grew up and I used ol' Maggie - which had been in my family weapon for decades - for the first time and it turned out that smashing my first tree got me really excited and made things get really bright and-"

Quickly covering her mouth with his hand, a slightly unnerved Ren finished for her, "She nearly caused everyone in the village to go into cardiac arrest. Realizing she had unwittingly manifested her semblance, the village elders sent her with me to a regional Valean combat academy to hone our skills since I was already set to enroll. That is how we became close friends."

"Mmfhharumphgmbmf!" Nora added, still muffled by Ren's hand, which caused him to soften his expression and turn to her as he dropped his hand.

"Huh?"

"And then got together-together!~" she repeated contentedly.

And unable to hold back a light blush, he replied softly with a warm smile, "Yes. It is also what led to our eventually getting 'together-together'."

"Heh, that definitely explains why she's always had that much pent up energy," Jaune expressed with a brief chuckle, "We'll have to see it in action someday!"

Breaking into light laughter, the group came to unanimous agreement with the White Knight before loud buzzing erupted through the speakers.

"Ack," Blake murmured, her hands placed against her ears and her bow seemingly flattening a bit on her head, "The feedback is terrible right now!"

"I think someone may be trying to announce something on the loudspeakers," Sun observed as he looked up and came to the cat-faunus' side to take her in his arm, Blake now burying her head into his shoulder to drown out the high-pitched noise.

_A- kkkkffft -Ou- fffffftkshhh -Our apologies. Ah, there we go,_ Ironwood's voice now came out clearly over the loudspeakers, _It seems our equipment is still recovering from the previous match..._

Jaune looked over at his sister who still seemed to have some trouble sitting up, "C'mon, Mayflower. Let's get you to your seat... Ironwood's right, you fought a heck of a match. I'll see the rest of you guys in a bit!"

With the rest of team JNPR joining him, The Arkos couple now having clearly established their stakes in the tournament, May turned to him once more as he and Pyrrha supported her by her shoulders.

"I guess I now know how Terra felt..."

"Yeahhh..." he drawled with a chuckle, "But I'm sure you won't be the last person to get fried in this tournament."

Team JNPR and the remaining students waiting by the arena entrance listened as General Ironwood made the official announcement.

_For our next match, we'd like to call to the arena Warren Peece and-_

_**TO BE CONTINUED...**_

* * *

**A/N: Heh, I haven't ended things in a cliffhanger for a while :) I hope you liked the chapter, and though there aren't too many references - except the Captain Underpants-inspired RWBY fic _Hypnotherapy_ by zelkova48, read it if you get a chance! - there's lots of buildup happening towards the final match! Anywho, as a reminder, OCs have already been chosen and more info will come with the Volume 2 epilogue :D**

**Now for some thank-you notes!**

***tylerlb14: Thank you! I definitely agree - it's like mixing Robert Downey Jr. and Gavin Free from RT hehe :)**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! And yep, you called it! As for Jaune and Yang's next move... well... more will be found out soon ;)**

***SpanishBulldog63: Thank you! And heck yes, I _would_ reference something like that dress hah! **

***Dj182: Thank you! And no worries, I really appreciate your review and am actually going back and fixing the mistakes I find from the beginning of the story, so thanks! :)**

***DJ-Juju: Thank you! And yes, it's black and blue haha :D**

***SuperSaiyajin4Vegeta: Thank you! It's really cool to hear from someone who has kept up with my work from the start and you have no idea how happy I get to know that it's being enjoyed :D And yes, Volume 2 was literally and idea that came from my napkin, scribbling what I thought would make a good Vytal Tournament to give me time to plan out Volume 3 and ask for OCs heh :)**

***joae12: Thank you! And well, that's a question that will be answered in due time ;)**

***kylesilos: Heh. Hehe. You know, I actually have previously had to delete comments like this that a couple people made about ten chapters or so ago... But now, I think I can say that you're on to something there... ;)**

***TheBluePsychoticStrategist: Meh, it is what it is.**

***OC Vaiden Talos: Thank you! I'm glad you like my fic and I'll continue to try my best :)**

***Marronmario: Thank you! Chaos and Destruction is kinda the mantra of Volume 2 haha :)**

***Mattysteel: Thank you! And well, I'd say that I brough OC couples into this fic way back with Vin and Yang tho :) And I can see you're a Wind Rose shipper too, but hang tight and more will be revealed ;)**

***LoveGlutton: Thank you! And Professor Dandelion is a self insert, actually. He's me ;) A friend of mine talked me into putting in an SI a while back and I did, and that was the result heh. Before _ThePhantomScribe_, my pen name was _SavageDandelion_.**

***ImSoAwesome: Thank you! And hah, I always love reading your reviews - you always get me hyped up for the next chapter too! And then I'm like 'wait, _I'm_ the one writing this story!' and then I start working on it and stuff haha :P And yes, there shall be answers revealed!**

***Lazercorn51104: Thank you! Yes, the dress. And yes, Walking Dead ;) Umm... The Contender isn't a song, though I think it'd be cool if I had a song for this Volume too, like I had Hans Zimmer - Time feat. Satellite Empire (the Machinist mix) last Volume... You gave me a good idea, actually :)**

***LeoSalvador: I know man... I know :'(**

**Phew, lots of note-writing heh, you guys are so awesome! And in case you haven't, feel free to fave, follow and review :D stay tuned for the next chapter - _The Unexpected!_**

**And as always, Happy Reading!**


	66. Vol 2-20: The Unexpected

**A/N: Loads of stuff and LOTS of traveling. Writing is crazy tough these days, but I hope to reach a lull with my daily runaround to get more writing time done sometime soon! No promises, but let's do this!**

**Chapter 20 starts now!**

* * *

**_The Unexpected_**

* * *

_Flash_.

There went one.

_FlashFlash_.

There went some more.

_Fafafafafafafafafa_...

Flashes. That's all they were. Like old sepia images laid in some random order, scenes played like from an aged movie whose reel could barely hold itself together.

Yang opened her eyes, the scene played from her first meeting with Vin still fresh in her mind from all those months before. It seemed like an eternity had passed since the four girls had joined their fellow team in their dorm to find the young man recently awoken and apparently amnesiac...

"I can't even remember if that was a dream last night or just my memories in my sleep," the brawler mumbled to herself, slowly rubbing her temples before being nudged in the side by her sister.

"You okay, Yang? You look tired."

"Mm?" the blonde questioned slowly as the group waited on the next announcement from the arena stage, "I'm fine. Didn't sleep too good last night, that's all."

The young leader pursed her lips at the info, trying to think of a way to alleviate the situation.

"Need coffee? I can get you some real quick, and you might need it especially since you could get called any second now."

_For our next match, we'd like to call to the arena Warren Peece and... Yang Xiao Long._

The blonde brawler slowly turned to face her nervously chuckling sister.

"You just _had_ to open your mouth..."

"Hehe... Sorry?"

Playfully punching Ruby in the shoulder, Yang stood up to the sounds of her team and friends' encouraging words and faced the arena before turning back to her sister with a smile.

"Don't worry Rubes, I'll be fine!"

"With that augmented semblance of yours, I doubt there will be an issue regardless," Blake smugly interjected nearby, earning a confident wink from her partner.

But as she turned away from her team and began her descent into the arena, Yang discarded that mask of confidence she had become so used to wearing, sighing exhaustedly as the images from the previous night flitted through her mind once more. She didn't think it was dream, which was why she hadn't mentioned it to Jaune originally, but now she wasn't so sure.

'It's like they're memories set on replay...' she lamented internally before resuming her confident smirk as she entered the arena.

_Very well, _Ironwood began as Yang and her soon-to-be opponent approached the platform, _This match will be judged by Classic Tournament rules_, _first contestant whose aura drops to the red is eliminated. Are you both ready?_

Yang knew what she could do. She knew how to handle herself and knew every weapon in her arsenal - both physical and psychological - and had full confidence in each and every one. But for the past month after the Valean War, things just hadn't been the same.

She had experienced something so much more than confidence when Vin had come around; it was an exhilaration she had become quite addicted to, to someone who had given her the ability to be close to them without any danger from her unpredictable semblance. But she hadn't just lost it all... She had lost him _and_ brought him back, only to lose him again all at once. And now he was gone.

_That_... That was what had changed in her.

But now wasn't the time to think. It was the time to _act_. Davin had faced her after they had first met with the same mindset and had taught her to use it to her advantage. As she now nodded to the General's question, she cleared her mind and focused on her new opponent.

_The match will begin shortly,_ Ironwood stated before nodding at Warren and turning to leave the platform, the Atlas candidate then turning to face Yang.

"Well, _this_ is quite the surprise," the student observed with a sly smirk, eliciting a raised brow from the baller.

"How so?"

"That I'd come to this Oum-forsaken continent and find such a rare beauty in such a hostile competition!" he replied gaily with a flourish of his arms in his gesture at her, "_Chula eres!_"

Yang deadpanned. She was about to face a guy like _that?_

"I don't know what that means, but I don't like it."

He raised an amused brow, "Chula? It is a term for a beautiful girl where I come from. I assure you, it's quite a compliment... and one I don't give easily."

Yang rolled her eyes, "I feel flattered."

"Care to tell me more about it over drinks after this?"

He almost looked like he was about to take a step back in surprise when Yang steeled her gaze on him and her hair nearly caught flame.

"_No_."

_Beep_.

At the sound of the signal, Warren's face relaxed and he resumed his smug smirk in her direction.

"Very well. I presume this marks the end of our pleasantries. _Qué lamentable_."

"Ya _think?_" she growled as she engaged her gauntlets at her wrists.

Warren would've replied had it not been for the subsequent volley of whistling bullets flying at him from Ember Celica.

_BAM! BAMBAMBAMBAMBAM!_

Demolishing a section of the arena with their explosive might, Yang's weapon rained down golden fury on her counterpart as he nimbly flipped and shifted around the powerful projectiles, dashing across the arena until Yang paused to lead him in his trajectory and fired a bullet at his head.

However, no sooner had the bullet reached his vicinity when his grey sai was unsheathed and on guard, splitting the bullet so fast that it couldn't even detonate on contact. With both halves falling uselessly at his sides, he began converging on Yang as she fired round after round at him only to be deflected by the same sai.

She grimaced as he neared her strike-range and lifted her right gauntlet ready to unleash its remaining payload, "Why you little-"

_Ba-BOOM!_

Her entire mag unloaded in a single punch, Yang and the audience struggled to see through the smoke created from the ignited blast only to gape in shock as the young man stood there with his white sai upheld in guard position against her gauntlet, his steady aura receding back into his arm.

His smirk never having left, he merely straightened himself out to standing position and motioned to her weapons.

"_Por favor_. Please, reload."

Hesitating a moment out of her surprise, a reaction that seemed to cause his smirk to grow into a grin, Yang watched him with narrowed eyes as she wordlessly ejected her remaining shells and reloaded.

He faintly nodded with a somewhat impressed expression that Yang was sure only Mercury could emulate as closely.

"_Lista?_"

"YAH!"

With flaming punches, Yang didn't even deign him with a verbal response as she pushed him back with her powerful offensive maneuvers. His white sai now in play, he kept it in guard as he dodged and blocked every punch until finally pushing out with his aura through the weapon and sending the brawler back skidding.

Panting as she raised her gaze up at him, Yang couldn't help commenting about the weapons that had withstood her powerful gauntlets.

"What... _are_ those things?"

"_Estos? _These?" he commented as he glanced at the weapons in his hands, "I call the grey one War and the white one Peace. War and Peace, heh."

She scoffed as she stood up straight to face him.

"I don't see how that makes any sense as names for a weapon."

He shrugged nonchalantly before replying, "Eh? My grey sai is sharp, and my white one is blunt... it seems fair. _Mire_, you may not realize that war and peace as we know them are only different on the surface. But in reality, they have one very important thing in common."

"Which is?"

"_La lucha!_" he replied with the first laugh - or more like a cackle - that Yang had heard from him, "You must struggle, you must _fight_, to exceed in either one!"

And with his resumed cackle, he lunged at her with Peace on reverse-gripped guard and War on offense, attacking and defending against her reciprocated counters. Finally getting under her defense, he placed another critical blow on her abdomen with his Peace-wielding fist and sent her back flying with a simultaneous pulse of his aura from the weapon.

What he didn't expect was for her to stand after such a hardened blow nearly unscathed... And chuckling.

She lifted her head, revealing her now red-irised gaze at him as she grinned with predatory anticipation.

"Wrong move, buddy."

Not a second more passed before she was on him, unleashing blow after blow of semblance-augmented punches that he was barely able to keep up with. Leveling both arms downward to block a devastating spinning kick, his defensive motions of guarded sai-placement failed to hold against the next jabbing combo from the fiery blonde followed by a final right hook that made stomach-churning contact with the left side of his face.

_POW!_

Thrown back with the superhuman force of the blow and the full salvo of her gauntlet, the echo of impact around the arena had actually faded by the time he landed in a heap on the floor. Yang grinned, anticipating the emergence of the General to announce her victory as her team cheered from the stands above... but nothing happened.

Hearing the faint rustling of debris behind her, she turned to see Warren slowly trying to stand. Eyes red and hair flaming once more, she locked and loaded her gauntlets and began walking towards him before suddenly being pushed back by what felt like a gust of wind.

"What the-?" Yang mumbled to herself, feeling strange as she noticed the flame in her hair suddenly die out.

_WHOOSH!_

"Pwah!"

Yang grunted as she was now thrown back by what looked like a visible wave of grey aura coming from the crouched Atlesian, the young man finally standing and approaching the blonde as she scrambled to her feet.

"It's got a nice kick to it, doesn't it?" Warren finally asked enigmatically with a small grin, "_Una buena patada!_"

"What are you talking about?" Yang asked, no less peeved than before.

But this time, it was her who didn't get an answer as Warren quickly sheathed his weapons and began to engage Yang in hand-to-hand combat. He had a powerful technique that served to lessen her punches, literally grabbing her arms or legs as they came at him to redirect the strikes and create openings for his own. As seconds turned into minutes, Warren began landing more and more punches on her that continually knocked her back.

"I-It doesn't make any sense!" Ruby exclaimed from the stands above, great worry etched on her features as she looked upon her lilac-eyed sister below, "With those hits, Yang should've started being able to really wail on him by now!"

"Ruby's right," Weiss observed objectively, "At this point, the force from those blows should've clearly imbued Xiao Long with incredible strength through her semblance."

_BAMBAMBAM!_

Another salvo of Ember Celica's final bullets through a solid punch came down on Warren but to no avail, his strengthened block holding firm against Yang's desperate combo before landing a final palm-strike to her torso that sent her flying back against an exposed boulder which had fallen along the arena edge.

"Aaarrgh!" she cried out as her back made painful contact with the rock, surprised that her aura wasn't taking care of it as quickly as it normally did. But she couldn't even fall to the floor before being seized by the neck from her opponent.

"I was talking about my _semblance_, Miss Xiao Long," Warren now replied with a malicious grin, "_Cansada?_ There's a reason for that. Your semblance has been rendered inept... By _mine_."

Yang gasped for breath as she struggled against his grip. But her vision finally beginning to become blurry around the edges, her watery gaze shifted to the gleaming of her left gauntlet. Wincing with the effort, she pointed it at his feet and discharged her remaining ammunition, blowing the two apart in a blast of gunpowder across the arena.

Haggardly sucking in the burnt air around her with her hand rubbing her throat, Yang then looked up and engaged the Atlesian with renewed vigor. Through the settling dust, her jabs and knee-strikes each went blocked as the young man countered her with strikes of his own. However, her power wasn't returning as he began pelting her with flurries of punches and palm-strikes that began throwing her back; clearly having mastery over martial arts, he landed another powerful kick in her abdomen that had her struggling to stay up.

"_Verdaderamente te digo_," he said as he slowly nodded his head at her action of bringing up her fists for more, "I am truly impressed. One finds out what a Huntsman is truly made of when you've forcibly removed their semblance... And _you_, Chula, have quite the fighting spirit!"

Slightly bloodied and with tattered gear, Yang scowled as she wiped the most recent smear of blood from her bottom lip.

"You don't need to tell me that for me to know. Come here and I'll _show_ you how much fight I have left!"

Pausing for a moment in surprise, he merely chuckled and shook his head as he dropped his combat pose and reached behind him.

"Ehehe, truly you are a rare bird. For this, I shall end this as painlessly for you as possible."

Growling in her anger, the lilac-eyed brawler sprung to action, leaping in the air to land a right hook on him only to be blasted back by the powerful aura pulse he sent through his now outheld white sai.

No sooner had Yang landed when Ironwood appeared on the platform.

_Match victory goes to Warren Peece. Congratulations!_

Sitting up, Yang opened her eyes on the floor and drew back as she saw Warren standing up over her, his hand reached out for her to grab. Reluctantly, she did so, standing with a lingering scowl as he addressed her.

"You fight with heart, Miss Xiao Long. But your emotions distract you... How unbefitting for a future Huntress."

"How would _you_ know?" she practically spat at him, setting her jaw and clenching her fists at her sides.

"Oh, it doesn't take much," he replied curtly before unexpectedly taking a long whiff of the air around her like an animal that was disgusted by what it was smelling, "_Sentiment_. The rot of aura. And you reek of it. _What_, is it for some boy, some _pendejo_ you think cares whether you win or not? Whatever was holding you back when you were facing me Chula, _let it go_. Maybe one day you may stand a chance at survival as a _true_ Huntress!"

She merely shook her head at him with a deep scowl, her inner anger unexpectedly wrenching out hot tears that pooled around her eyes and threatened to fall instead of her usual reaction of lashing out.

"_You bastard._"

And with that, she stomped off to the arena exit, choosing - for the sake of the reputation of her team and academy, as Davin always said - to ignore the Atlesian sardonically calling out after her.

"What! Was it something I said? Hehe..."

* * *

"What is _she_ doing here..." Yang began after exiting the arena and meeting with her team, only to find May and a familiar entrant accompanying them.

Ruby cut in first, knowing it was better she try and regulate the situation lest things get out of hand, "Well, she said she'd try to help explain what happened as best she could..."

"So you _do_ know that punk!" the brawler cried out as she advanced on the new girl, Blake dashing forward to hold her back.

"Yang, please stand back, she's only trying to help and you're already - OW! - you're already beginning to burn up!" The ravenette advised as she reeled back with pained hands which had been stung by Yang's heated semblance.

"Good," the new blonde stepped forward, putting a hand on Blake's shoulder in a gesture to stand down, leaving her to face Yang alone, "The effects of Peece's semblance is starting to wear off..."

Gritting her teeth, Yang stared Terra down for a moment before letting her arms fall with a huff. Ruby then stepped forward, a small measure of curiosity driving her to speak up.

"W-What do you mean 'the effects'?"

The young woman turned to the crimsonette to elaborate, "Peece's semblance is quite interesting. You see, once activated, it essentially negates any surrounding aura-users' semblances within a certain area for an extended period of time."

"And you would know this _how?_" Weiss asked with a raised brow in suspicion.

A short silence befell the group as teams VNDS and JNPR rounded a corner to see - and practically feel - the current tension. Terra looked around the group almost nervously befor taking a deep breath and speaking up.

"Because... He is - er, _was_ \- my team leader back in Atlas."

"Then you know a lot about him?" Jaune asked with concern.

Terra all but snorted before continuing, "Hah! As you can see, he's not exactly the _approachable_ type. He's good, though. Combat-wise. Many consider him to be the best multi-range fighter in Atlas. But he's a real zealot-type - laser-focused on ensuring only the best of the best become Huntsmen and that all others get out."

Sun whistled at the explanation, "Sounds like a real piece o' work, that guy."

Terra nodded pointedly, "That just about sums it up. Atlas Academy isn't exactly fond of the yearly tournaments... most just see it as pointless. But he and I are part of the best team the school had to offer, so our Headmaster asked if we'd be interested in representing the kingdom this year."

"And being the _swell_ guy he is," Neptune added sarcastically with a cheesy fist-pump, "I bet ole Mister Full-of-himself just _couldn't_ refuse the chance to weed out the lesser beings!"

"He is quite set on that path, yes," Terra continued matter-of-factly, earning glowering expressions of many in the group towards the victor in the match against Yang, "And I agreed to come to try and recruit other promising entrants for Atlas Academy..."

She paused, taking a moment to cast a sideways glance at May before melodramatically blowing away a blonde lock from her side-bangs that had fallen in front of her face and continuing, "...Though _that_ didn't quite work as I'd have liked."

Though a few smug expressions were directed at May for her impressive victory the day before, Velvet still kept narrowed eyes trained on the young woman.

"But... Is that even necessary? And why choose _you_ to recruit others?"

Terra didn't miss a beat as she replied with a smirk, "Because I possess a rather... _persuasive_... skill set, both on and off the arena."

"A fat load of good _that_ did you," Yang quipped in response, causing the smirk to drop off Terra's face as she turned to her fellow blonde's direction.

All she did in reply, however, was shrug nonchalantly before Ozpin's voice rang out on the intercoms.

_And for our final match of the day, we'd like to call to the arena Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee._

"Eep!" was all Ruby could mutter in surprise before being grabbed by the hood by a surprisingly pleased heiress.

"_Well_, I suppose I should've seen that coming since we were the last contestants remaining. Come, _dear leader_, we have pressing matters to attend to!"

Despite herself, just the view of her sister frantically flailing about uselessly against the iron grip of Miss Schnee was enough to put a smirk on Yang's lips.

"Is it just me, or does the sight of Weiss smiling so much still weird people out?"

Of all the people to reply, it was Neptune who silently made his way to her side to watch the partners enter the arena lights before speaking up.

"Honestly, it kinda gets to me too. She still only does that when she's up to something devious," he remarked before giving a slight shudder.

Yang glanced at him and raised an eyebrow, "_Devious_, huh? Do we even wanna know?"

The blush that promptly appeared on his cheeks told her there was no need.

* * *

"Gah! Okay okay okay, no need to girlhandle me, Weiss! Sheesh!" Ruby complained as the snowy-haired girl deposited her at the front of the platform with a classy grin.

The Headmaster couldn't help a ghost of a smirk as he eyed the two partners in front of him and how far they had come in their dealings before speaking up with his usual air of distant professionalism.

_This match will be judged by Classic Tournament rules_, _first contestant whose aura drops to the red is eliminated. Are you both ready?_

"Yes."

"Sure."

_Very well, the match will begin shortly._

As the cane-wielding Professor made his way off the arena, Ruby turned to Weiss with a pout.

"What gives, Weiss! That kinda hurt..."

Dismissing her words, her partner merely raised a hand and began politely, "The first time I met you, all I wanted to do was to have this kind of opportunity to show the school - nay, the _world_ \- that I was truly your superior and that I deserved the title I had seen fit to have bestowed upon me..."

Somewhat taken aback by the sudden confession, Ruby's brows shot up as she replied shakily, "A-And?"

"_And_," Weiss continued before dropping her hand and surprising her partner again with an unexpected giggle, "Well... it's _still_ mostly about proving myself superior in combat..."

Ruby deadpanned at her partner's amusement to which Weiss held out both hands, but this time in placation as she tried to regain her composure.

"But _now_, I find it rather pleasant that what I feel is the desire to see how far you've come since we've first met!" Taking a moment to calm down before unsheathing her rapier with a genuine smile, she continued, "Ruby, I'm glad we're getting this opportunity to face each other because I feel we've all had a part in your development as a _fine_ leader, and I'd like nothing more than to experience the results of said development first-hand in combat."

Grinning sheepishly as she slowly unhooked Crescent Rose as well, Ruby replied cheerfully, "Aww Weiss, that really means a lot to me! Thanks!"

"_But_," the heiress now interrupted with her usual stern tone while pointing Myrtenaster at the crimsonette, "_Don't_ expect me to hold back against you. This is an official tournament, after all."

_Beep_.

Ruby readied herself at the starting signal as she swung her weapon behind herself, "I wouldn't have it any other way!"

_BLAM!_

Firing her scythe, Ruby used the recoil as a launch to begin speeding towards Weiss in a flurry of red petals. With a smug smirk, the heiress brought her blade back in guard, spinning it to yellow Dust before activating her semblance and speeding toward her opponent as well.

_CLANG!_

The sounds of metal on metal rang out in the arena as Ruby sped around Weiss, swinging down her scythe repeatedly as the heiress turned to block with all-out slashes of her own rapier. With enough force from Ruby's speeding strikes against Weiss' firm ripostes to cause sparks to rain down around the arena, the heiress was struck with an idea.

Arming her rapier with an unusual pale Dust, Weiss reveled in Ruby's surprised expression as her blade began sprouting forks of electricity all over.

"Oh-" Ruby eked out before Weiss unleashed a blast of electricity at her, lighting up the arena in the shimmering light.

But to her surprise, her vision adjusted to the brightness only to see Ruby several yards away with Crescent Rose's head held out against the bolt of energy, the blade absorbing the attack without any apparent damage.

"Not bad!" The crimsonette began as she looked up at her partner while the attack continued, "But I made some upgrades after watching Vin's electric attacks!"

"_Ugh_," the heiress scoffed as she stopped the dust-powered discharge, dashing at Ruby while readying her next attack.

But stopping her opponent in her tracks, the red-hooded leader swung the tip of her blade into the ground and began firing at her, forcing Weiss to deflect the large-caliber projectiles where she stood. Switching to red dust as Ruby finally ran out of ammo, Weiss then approached before the red leader could reload and lunged.

"Hiyah!" _BOOM! _"Yah!" "Heh!" _POW!_

Blasts of flames flew throughout the arena as with every block of the red-runed Myrtenaster against Crescent Rose's blade, a cone of fire erupted in sideways directions. Beads of sweat building on her forehead, Ruby held out until finally exhausting Weiss' supply of red Dust and the heiress dropped back to switch to dark blue Dust.

Taking advantage of the situation, Ruby finished reloading and dashed at Weiss. But before she could reach her, she yelped as she suddenly began floating upwards towards a large blue glyph.

_SHHHINNNG!_

Weiss flew upwards at her with Myrtenaster on the lunge which was barely blocked by a chance flick of Ruby's scythe.

"Weeeiiiss!?" Ruby cried out quizzically as the heiress deployed several more blue glyphs around them, encasing them in a blue cage of rotating constructs in midair.

_Clang Clang! Clang! ClangClang!_

Dashing across the suspended fighting grounds, Weiss attacked Ruby with several slashes as the audience watched the glowing spectacle in awe. But gaining her bearings, Ruby responded in kind, taking the heiress by surprise as she too began bounding off the edges of the glyphs and returning Weiss' attacks blow for blow.

"How are you-ACK!" Weiss shrieked as she was cut off by Ruby's well-placed blow at her abdomen with the butt of her scythe.

Crashing out of the cage with the force of the blow, the construct fell apart as the girls landed and Ruby readied her Augmented Cross rounds to end the match. What she didn't expect, however, was the blast of green wind that literally sliced through the magazine cartridge in front of her.

Wide-eyed, Ruby glanced at a quaintly smug Weiss as her rapier began glowing green all over.

"Green Dust," the heiress explained complacently for the bemused crimsonette, "I haven't used it in quite some time, but I thought it fitting for the possible scenario in which I'd need to face you."

"Why would it be fitting for _my_ case!?" Ruby cried out in confusion.

But instead of getting a response, Weiss engaged with another slash that sent a fairly familiar gust of Razor Wind in Ruby's direction, blasting her back against the arena wall.

"Ow..." the crimsonette mumbled before having to dash away at the last second in a flash of petals from another wind attack, "How am I supposed to keep dodging this!?"

At that moment, a sudden ringing sound in her ear nearly caused her to trip as she brought up both hands to her ears.

'_He-_'_ kkkkkffft_ '_Hey R-_'_ kaaaaafffff _'_Hey Ruby!_'

Her expression bore a mixture of surprise and unexpected excitement as she instantly recognized the voice, pausing in her sprint for a moment before having to begin running again to dodge another wind slash.

"Seul!"

'_Yes, 'Seul'! Ruby, I-_'

"Seul ohmygosh this is crazy can you believe what's happening Weiss just started doing some crazy stuff and there's wind and green lights and I'm running a lot and starting to lose my breath a bit and-"

'_RUBY!_' Seul's voice rang through the line she'd kept in her ear - just in case he wanted to talk at any time while he was gone or something, '_Quiet down for a second and pay attention!_'

"Eep! Okay!"

Ruby continued running, shifting her trajectory as more attacks rained down around her while the boy continued.

'_Ruby, she's using green dust right now and by what I can see_-'

"Wait what? You're watching me right now!?"

A loud facepalm was heard across the other end of the line before he spoke up again.

'..._Yes_.'

After taking a moment to hold back an elated squeal of joy, Ruby replied, "Okay okay, that's cool - I mean, that's _alright_, I guess-"

'_Yes yes,_' Seul interrupted impatiently, '_I know that. What I'm trying to get to is how to stop her before you run out of aura. The green dust she uses is a less potent form of my semblance... That's bad because it's fairly efficient and with the amount her rapier can carry, she likely can keep this up for hours._'

"Then?"

'_The GOOD thing is that it's weak enough to be deflected back at her. By weak, I mean INCREDIBLY difficult, but if anyone can do it, it's you._'

"Okay what do I do?" Ruby responded with a light blush as she leaped over a low wind-slash that gouged a deep crack in the arena wall behind her.

'_You'll need the right amount of speed and spot-on reflexes, but if you can get your scythe moving fast enough to catch the next attack, you'll be able to slingshot the attack back at her!_'

"Awesome, thanks!"

'_Okay good, by-_'

"Wait wait, Seul!"

'_What_.' he replied, a hint of concern in his voice at the unexpected interruption.

"Can't Weiss hear this too?"

'_No... I kinda took over Cipher's comm controls after he got... uh... distracted with Gabby somewhere a few minutes ago_.'

Ruby thought for a moment as she glanced at her opponent readying another attack from the center of the arena, "Gabby? Oh, _Gabriel_, Jaune's sister! Okay... But Seul, why are you doing this?"

A faint chuckle was heard just before Seul replied light-heartedly, '_I have... NO idea... Good luck, Rose_.'

And with that, the transmission cut out as Weiss unleashed another attack.

"Here goes nuthinnn!" Ruby yelled as she began imbuing Crescent Rose with her semblance, the blade trailing rose petals of its own as it reached record speeds.

_WooWooWooWooWHOOOOOSH!_

And just as the attack reached Ruby, the green wind was disrupted around the whirling blade and finally coalesced into a red wind-blade that Ruby prompty shot back at Weiss, throwing the heiress against the opposite arena wall.

A loud cumulative gasp heard from the audience at the incredible feat, Weiss fell to the ground in a crouch, both girls at opposite ends of the arena panting and weary.

"That... was _impossible_..." Weiss huffed between breaths.

"Not impossible... just... _really_ difficult!" the red leader replied with a thumbs up, "Hey partner... Would you like to build a snowman?"

Icy fury taking hold over the snowy-haired girl, she stood up with a growl, "Again with the _stupid_ references!"

Quickly bringing up her rapier, Weiss changed the cylinder to her remaining chamber - light blue - as Ruby crouched in launch position for a final dash.

"Ready or not..." Weiss began as the final chamber locked in place.

Ruby's blade gave off a final twinkle before she took off at blinding speed crying out, "Here I come!"

_Cra-KKKSSHHH!_

What happened next was a mystery to all but the trained eyes of the three judges who watched from above with great interest.

At the moment of the dust's activation, the tip of Ruby's blade just happened to make contact with the chamber at super-speed as Weiss thrust her blade forward, the resulting rupture exposing the dust to the surrounding air and causing it to react. The following explosion completely encased both opponents in a giant block of ice, each immobilized and unarmed.

As silence settled for a brief moment, mumbling began to break out and rise among the audience members as Ozpin walked out onto the platform in front of the frozen duo.

_This... is a new development,_ the Headmaster began slowly, _Being that such an event has never taken place and only victors move on in the tournament, it has been ruled that the match will end in a draw - in effect, disqualifying both Miss Rose and Miss Schnee from advancing to the next round._

Despite the audible objections from the crowd, the Professor continued coolly, _This scenario will send Warren Peece directly to the finals, and further deliberation shall take place in determining the manner of match that will decide his opponent. The decision shall be made known tomorrow morning. This ends today's events, and you may all be dismissed._

Raising his cane, the silver-haired Headmaster brought down the tip with an audible strike, the reverb from the impact deflecting off the arena walls and growing with larger and larger ringing until the ice around Ruby and Weiss finally cracked and exploded.

"_You_," Weiss finally began flatly at Ruby as she limped over to her weapon and sheathed it, the crimsonette doing the same with her scythe, "You truly _are_ a hazard to my health..."

* * *

"Hey, I bought you a full tub of blueberry frozen yogurt to make up for everything!" Ruby began later that evening, the four girls in their pj's and readying themselves for bed.

"It'll take much more than _that_ *_glomp_* to make up fer ruiming mah cherncers in the ternermernt *_glomp_* in serch an unerftudux mernner! *_glomp_*" the heiress yelled back decisively between spoonfuls of her favorite fruity dessert, "And now I'm _stress-eating!_ Ugh!"

Yang reluctantly listened to the argument raging below her from her bunk, trying to sort through the memories of the day that she'd tried to keep out until now as she laid in bed.

"Well... how 'bout a hug?" Ruby meekly suggested.

"NO- _OOF!_" the heiress could biarely reply until a dull whump below her told Yang that Ruby had followed through with her own suggestion anyway.

"I said not to touch meee... _dunce_," Weiss whined in reply, but judging by the slightly muffled state of her voice, Yang could also tell that the heiress was likely hugging Ruby back as well.

As if to confirm her suspicion, a black bow suddenly appeared beside her bunk along with her vaguely amused partner's face that followed.

"They're hugging it out. Problem solved."

"It's about _time_," Yang replied grumpily, "I just wanna get to sleep and forget today ever happened already..."

But continuing to climb the bunk, Blake nimbly hopped onto Yang's bed and sat cross-legged in her yukata, a silently worried expression on her expressive features.

"It seems you have a few unresolved problems as well at the moment."

"You gonna hug me 'till I feel better too?~" Yang drawled lazily at the cat-faunus' direction.

Blake chuckled a bit with her reply, "I'd prefer not to be squeezed to death, thank you very much."

Rolling her eyes, Yang was surprised by the sudden placement of a small object over her bosom. Looking down, she saw the familiar electronic device and stared.

"Sun gave it to me earlier," Blake continued softly so only Yang could hear, "He said Neptune had found it while cleaning out Davin's desk and that you both used to listen to it together frequently."

Swallowing a small knot in her throat, Yang finally reached for the small music player, cradling it against herself like a precious jewel before turning to her partner, "Y-Yeah, we were building a shuffle mix on it... we gave it a random name-"

"Vin and Yang's Infinite Playlist," Blake finished with a small smile, "I remember, you told me about that once."

"Right..." the blonde replied as she sat up and paused for a moment, "I actually thought I'd never see this again. I guess I figured he must've had it on him or something when-"

She stopped short when Blake put her hand on her shoulder with a tight smile, her evident intention having been to keep Yang from saying what she was about to say out loud and causing herself more pain.

"It's alright. They thought it best that the player be kept in your possession."

Smiling at the gesture, Yang placed her hand over Blake's as she nodded in understanding, "Thanks, Blakey."

And lifting her hand off Yang's shoulder to give the blonde's hand an empathetic squeeze, Blake then swung her legs over the side of the bunk and wordlessly hopped off to get to her own bed. How long anyone else stayed awake, Yang didn't care anymore as she placed the earbuds over her ears and laid back on her pillow before pressing _play_.

Song after song passed, each with its own memory and moment as she recalled having added and listened to each and every one of them by Davin's side... unaware of the dorm lights that were eventually switched off, unaware of the rising moon as the night hours passed her by, unaware of the warm tears that had been trickling down her cheeks the entire time with every song that finished.

The shuffle having finished their favorite remix - _Time_, by Satellite Empire, and remixed by an unknown DJ from Vacuo named The Machinist - Yang was ready to stop the player and get some rest when an unexpected sound from the earbuds caused her to freeze before she could press _stop_.

It was... _Coughing?_

'_A-A-Ahem!_' the familiar voice came through the small speakers in her ears, '_This is... DJ Rosfield, your friendly neighborhood MC, checking in for the last song on the list. So far. I mean... it IS an infinite playlist, after all..._'

Yang grinned as she whispered his name, hugging the music player to herself as if it were the young man whose recorded voice was currently playing, "Vin..."

'_Anyway_,' his recording continued, '_I was meaning to get this song to you as a surprise. Hence the recording, heh. I guess... it's just one of those songs you can listen to when you're having an off day or something. I know you don't have too many of those - being the beautiful, sweet, lovely, caring, and overall wonderful young woman that you are - but you know... It's one of those just-in-case things in the event that you and I are apart for a while and you could use a pick-me-up. Just think of it as me saying... 'Thanks for all you've done for me'. Welp, here goes..._'

Yang nuzzled back into her pillow, reveling in the warmth it provided in return as a simple piano track began playing with a faint ambient background of falling rain in her ears before the slow somber lyrics kicked in.

_Oh we're ouuut of ti-ime  
The fina-al call is ca-alling  
And the liiight falls light-ly,  
Be-tween us,_

Yang could feel her hands slowly tightening around the blanket on her sides as a melancholic violin harmony was softly added while the lyrics continued.

_Before tomooorrow co-omes,  
And it all gets looost aga-ain,  
The a-shes burn dowwwn bright-est,  
When we've ev-'ry-thinnng tooo lose_

_So scri-bble meee ouuut,  
Mistakes e-rased, Forgoootten,  
Life goes oo-on,_

_Withouuut meee..._

'How is this supposed to be a pick-me-up?' Yang asked herself dejectedly before noticing the piano melody suddenly begin to pick up pace and come to a stop, the entire track now bursting to life in an upbeat house tempo with the somber raining ambience long gone and the lyrics returning with swelling hope.

_But you said trust meee  
These are the sto-ries weee will tell,  
As I stood fro-zeeen,  
In-finite I al-most fell, But..._

_I got a feeling  
And my heart starts beating  
A su-dden rush of feeling  
__Aliiive, This is freedom_

_And I won't change  
I won't phase out  
III'm no gho-o-ost,  
Dooon't let gooo._

And with the vivid tracks converging into a single beat, the song led to a drop that exploded into one of the most enjoyable house music tracks that the blonde brawler had ever heard, the last line softly repeating over and over throughout the final seconds of the upbeat melodies until the song finally faded out.

'Mm, leave it to Vin to turn things around like that,' Yang warmly thought to herself as the playlist ended and she was left with high spirits on her bed along with a wide smile, 'I love you Vin, and you better not forget it...'

And with that thought, she drifted off to sleep, suddenly excited beyond a doubt when her dream picked up at the last moment that she and Vin had been together in the forest where they had said their last goodbye while she watched herself slip the medallion in Yang's pocket.

'Wait.'

And just like that, a switch was flipped that practically made the blonde brawler bolt up wide awake into seated position in her bed in the middle of the night.

Everything she had dreamt that night and the night before were certainly memories of her and Davin... But she realized that she had never actually _seen_ Davin in any of them. Only her. The dreams, the point of view common in all of them... they weren't _her_ memories...

They were Davin's.

* * *

**A/N: I'll begin by stating that the song name is _Scribble_ by Puppet :) I feel like that song is pretty pivotal to the second volume, and if _Chronicle_ had a soundtrack, it'd be three songs: _Time _(which was revealed in Volume 1), _Scribble_, and a third song that will be revealed in Volume 3 ;) Anyway, this was a fun chapter to write and I hope you guys like it! And finally, the Finals are just around the corner and will be one of my greatest undertakings since writing the finale of the first volume! Lots of things will be coming together during the finale and epilogue...**

**That being said, time for some thank-you notes! :D**

***LeoSalvador: Thank you for the review! And good question. Without getting too sciencey, Pyrrha didn't actually electrocute May, she held her to turn the two of them into essentially a biological electromagnet and reversed the poparity of said electromagnet fast enough to create a rudimentary EMP. EMPs disrupt electrical conduits, ergo, knocking out May :)**

***Terrorhunt: Thank you! And hah, I was tempted to add some of those references hehe but I'm saving them for later ;) Pyrrha + May = Firestorm? Gosh that'd be insanely awesome! O.o**

***Ou0: Thank you! Lightsabers, samurai suits, hammerspace... That's my jam on toast ;D**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! I know, I know, you could've predicted the outcome by the title :P It was meant to be that way haha**

***Mattysteel: Thank you! And Wind Rose = Seul Sinclair + Ruby Rose. Who knows, it could become a thing :)**

***Dj182: Thank you! Honestly, I hate the wait too heh :/ These are chapters I gotta be in the right mood to write, and life is pretty hectic lately and I'm not getting as many chances to write as I was getting before. Hopefully that'll change, but there isn't a way to know for sure at this time. I'll keep working on the grammar, and well, you can be the judge on Wind Rose ;)**

***dracohalo117: Thank you! I appreciate the compliments ^.^**

***SpanishBulldog63: Thank you! I had the general idea of the fights planned months ago haha and it was so much fun to finally write! And yes, you called it. Yang vs. Warren did happen :P**

**And that finishes the thank-you notes for this time around, feel free to leave a fave, follow and review to show your support or comment about how I'm doing! :D Once again, take care and stay tuned for the final chapter in Volume 2 - The Finals!**

**And as always, Happy Reading!**


	67. Vol 2-21: The Finals

**A/N: And now, the final chapter of Volume 2! It's about time, heh...**

**Not much to say other than the fact that I was able to get this chapter out due to temporary writer's block for both _JCoR_ and _Jaune Arc: TFU_. I mean, I know exactly what I want to write, but it's hard getting around to writing it right now. It's weird. Ah well, I'll get over myself eventually, but at least for now it means complete focus is going to _Chronicle!_**

**Enjoy, for the finale begins now!**

* * *

**_The Finals_**

* * *

Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.

All Jaune could hear was the sound of his own breathing, the sounds and cheers of the fresh audience in the amphitheater muted as he, Pyrrha and Warren stood in front of the empty platform in wait.

He understood what his growing power was capable of, and he was even beginning to understand his unique aura, but one thing he simply couldn't understand was why he was there at that moment. The training he'd received up to that point was paltry compared to the two incredible fighters beside him. Heck, compared to _everyone_ that had entered the tournament! Yet, there he was among them, waiting for the judges' decision on how to handle the final three of this year's Vytal Tournament.

For the umpteenth time, his mind rationalized walking away right then and there as the best option, leaving the judges with the easy choice and letting Pyrrha take on the Atlesian. But in his heart... he had heard what kind of guy this Warren Peece was - how cruelly he had treated Cipher and Yang - and wanted nothing more than to exact retribution in full.

'But... if that's the case,' he thought to himself slowly, 'Wouldn't Pyrrha be the best candidate to take him down?'

Pyrrha was the strongest soul he knew, and facing the Atlas student would be just like any other tournament match for her. At that point, his mind and heart came to an agreement.

Next to him stood the best Huntress-in-training of Mistral and probably the best Hunter-in-training of Atlas... in reality, the decision to the white knight was simple. But as he began to turn to walk away, he turned back at the sensation of his hand being held back softly.

"I know what you're thinking," Pyrrha whispered softly with bright and understanding emerald eyes, "And you belong here just as much as the rest of us."

Slightly taken aback, the knight stopped his retreat and replied nervously, "I'm... that easy to read, huh?"

A small smile crept over the spartan's lips as she nodded sheepishly, the smile being reciprocated on Jaune's part just before Ironwood appeared at the platform.

_Welcome one and welcome all to the final day of this year's Vytal Tournament!_

Holding out his arms in welcome at the thunderous applause, the General grinned warmly as he glanced down at the three contestants below him before continuing.

_Now as many of you know, we've never had a draw occur at such a late stage in the tournament, and we've been forced to... improvise. Having no other precedent to go by, we've decided to hold a pre-final match to decide the two finalists. Being the victor of the second leg of the tournament, Warren Peece shall be automatically dubbed the first of the finalists._

Despite the growing murmurs and measure of discontent from the audience, Ironwood now kept his gaze on the Beacon students, his grin never fading with his following words.

_This of course means that the two contestants who will do battle to face Mister Peece today will be Pyrrha Nikos and Jaune Arc._

If the noise was hushed before, the entire arena now was overcome by silence, a wordless anticipation forming around the two powerful fighters.

_Of course, _James continued with a break in his formal tone,_ We can't risk the winner being too winded to face our finalist. Therefore, there will be special conditions to this match. Would you like to hear it?_

Assuming he could only be talking to them, Jaune and Pyrrha traded an uncertain glance before facing the General and nodding slowly.

_You will both engage in a Sudden Death Match - the first entrant to land an aura-reducing blow shall lay claim to a place in the final round!_

It started slowly at first, but in a few seconds, whispers became cheers and applause at the acceptable adjustment, the knight now turning to his partner with a nervous chuckle.

"Well... I didn't see _that_ coming, heh..."

"_Por supuesto que no_," Warren cut in around Pyrrha's other side, "Of course not. I am the remaining contestant of my leg of the tournament and you both are what's left of yours. Truly, I commend you _both_ for reaching this stage!"

Both Jaune and Pyrrha raised a brow at the tentative compliment until Warren continued, "...But at this point, you can rest assured knowing that the identity of the victor of your little match will be of no consequence, as it's clear to see that I'll be taking the tournament this year. _Será fácil._.."

And with a low chuckle, he turned and walked off the arena, the Spartan particularly more peeved that she was a few seconds ago.

"The _nerve_ of-"

"You should take him on, Pyr," Jaune stated flatly, interrupting the now surprised Spartan in mid-sentence.

"What?" she asked incredulously.

"You know that you have the best shot to beat him. Even if I've done enough to be where I am right now, I'm not the fighter that you are..."

Pyrrha looked him in the eye, sighing as she placed a hand on his shoulder, "You do not know that for sure, Jaune. Not unless you try. If you can defeat me, you'll defeat him. It's as simple as that. But I for one am never going to let you write yourself off like that..."

She squeezed his shoulderpad lightly as she continued, "If we do this, we are doing this together. And if we are together, we give it our all!"

Jaune smiled warmly and nodded his head at his girlfriend's response, "Alright."

_Now that we are ready to commence our sudden death match, are you both ready to begin? _Ironwood asked the couple below him as the arena applause began to die down.

"Yes," both replied resolutely, to which the General nodded.

_Then take your places, for the match shall begin shortly._

Pyrrha then turned to Jaune with a warm smile, "We give it our all?"

"You bet," he replied with a grin as they separated into separate ends of the arena and dropped into combat stances.

To Pyrrha, this wasn't just _any_ match. This was so much more. Combat was a dance, a coordinated effort from two parties to achieve a single goal in tandem, following a natural rhythm that often felt like music between the powerful clashes of flesh and metal. And after a lifetime of facing mere combatants in the arena, she had finally found the perfect partner for the dance she wouldn't miss for the world.

Training with Jaune Arc was one thing, but now _everyone_ would see how far he'd come. So it was only natural for her to want this match to be as meaningful as possible.

_Beep._

_WHOOSSSHH!_

Of course, this didn't stop her from flinging Akoúo at her seemingly unprepared opponent the moment the starting signal went off.

"Wah!" Jaune yelped just before activating his semblance, the lethal spinning shield being halted magnetically an inch away from his face right in the nick of time. Thanking Monty for his semblance, he didn't have much time to breathe easy after that due to the sudden approach of Pyrrha's boot coming in from the edge of his vision.

Ducking under what _definitely_ would've been an aura-depleting impact, Jaune unsheathed Crocea Mors and blocked the first strike from Miló with his upheld shield as the Spartan snatched her own shield from midair with acrobatic flair mid-kick. The blast of razor wind that just happened to knock at her shield after that, however, was something she didn't expect, the impact sending her back a few meters as she braced herself behind the shield.

"There's no way I win this fight in close quarters!" Jaune called out in an almost amused tone as his partner recovered with a baleful smirk.

"So what you're saying is, you only wish to push me _away?_" she replied with a raised brow in jest and a hidden ominous tone that the knight unfortunately failed to catch on to, "But Jaune, love, you mustn't be afraid of intimacy~"

Surprised by the unusual talk from his partner, Jaune was even more surprised when he was forced towed her by the metal in his armor as she said the last word, her intention of knocking him out of the competition with a shield-butt as soon as he got in range evident.

But stopping himself short with an outheld hand, the opposing magnetic forces on his armor now causing it to creak in protest, Jaune couldn't help a chuckle as he replied, "You wanna beat me or give me a heart attack!?"

"According to Yang, it was worth a shot," she retorted with a light blush.

Jaune looked with narrowed eyes at his fellow blonde who was currently laughing her head off in the stands, by some unknown means having been close enough to hear what was said.

But to her merit, it was a rather... pleasant... surprise. But Pyrrha wasn't the only one with surprises tucked up her sleeve in this fight.

"Well not to be corny or anything, but I think it's time we _cool_ this down!" the knight suddenly began with a grin before whipping his hand across the arena.

And with the action, the audience gasped in awe as droplets of water were suddenly condensed in front of Jaune, the flow of condensation rapidly continuing and flowing into a stream of liquid that just as suddenly froze in a spike right in front of the startled Spartan. Quick enough to dodge the icy attack, Pyrrha was unable to, however, salvage her weapons which were now caught in the frozen icicle.

With a determined cry, the white knight then charged the Spartan in a burst of confidence, swinging down his sword only for it to be disarmed as the level-headed champion took it in a grapple hold and forced it out of his hand. In the same motion, she meant to also land an aura-enhanced jab to his throat but reeled back as he lifted his shield in time to block, knocking the sword out of her other hand as he did so.

"Yah!" Pyrrha grunted in exertion as she leaped and landed a strong spinning reverse kick onto said shield, knocking it away and sending Jaune tumbling back with both contestants now unarmed.

"This is proving to take quite some time for a sudden death match..." Glynda observed from the stands above.

"They know each other's styles very well, and have each grown as individuals... and as a _pair_, over their time here in Beacon," the ever-perceptive and currently smug Headmaster replied as he let out a rare smile at the couple, "They are _partners_, after all."

"Hmm, a partnership which surely aided them in their ordeals through Landfall..." Ironwood added softly from the side, causing the blonde disciplinarian to raise an eyebrow in question.

"How would you know the name of those ruins?" she asked simply, her professional demeanor belying the genuine curiosity underneath, "That information was never released to the public."

Ozpin trained a weathered eye on the General as the Atlesian leader replied coolly, "Well I assure you... I am not simply a citizen to be counted among the 'public'. As a military leader and Headmaster, I saw it necessary to retrieve such information for the educational benefit of both my soldiers and my students."

_CRACK!_

The sudden sound from the arena diverting the judges' attention away from the appointed head of security that year, the three watched as Pyrrha broke the large icicle with a roundhouse kick and regained her weapons. Much more worried now, Jaune ran to pick up his shield right on time to block a full magazine's worth of gunfire from Miló.

Now spent, Pyrrha transformed the gun into spear form and readied to aim at her opponent with a tank-piercing hurl of the weapon, Jaune still reeling from the constant ringing of gunfire and her previously alluring words that despite his current predicament was still sending shocks through his body-

'Wait. That gives me an idea!' he suddenly thought to himself in realization, formulating a plan in a moment of strategic epiphany.

Pyrrha Nikos was a truly remarkable young woman, one whose value Jaune would likely never be able to place. But in that moment, he knew how much that value was in the amount of love he felt for the young woman who had taught him how to value his _own_ merit. And he was about to put it to good use.

_WHOOSH-fft-KANG!_

Pyrrha gaped at the spot in the arena wall where Miló was now deeply embedded, the same spot where Jaune had been standing only a mere millisecond before, as the only evidence of his ever being there was his armor and pauldrons dropped on the floor... and a single red rose petal that softly fell on top.

"What in the-" was all the red-haired Spartan could mumble before her shield was knocked out of her hand with blinding speed and Jaune began running petal-flowing circles around her at breakneck speeds.

"What is that dunce doing!?" Weiss asked from above in surprise, Ruby's eyes opening wider in excited curiosity.

"He's making a kind of smokescreen with the rose petals!" the crimsonette exclaimed, "He knows Phrrha can't figure out his next move if he's moving fast enough!"

But in obscuring the spartan's vision, Jaune was also blurring the audience's vision to anything within the small vortex of dust and petals - much to their chagrin - as Pyrrha made her way to the edge of it and jutted her arm out in an attempt to magnetically clothesline the speeding knight.

However, the only reaction she got for the motion was the fleeting words that reached her as if by whisper, "I love you Pyrrha... no matter what. And _this_ is me giving it my all..."

Surprised by the lack of contact from her Jaune-stopping strategy, her eyes widened for only a moment as a pale apparition of Jaune appeared at her side, the knight having switched semblances to execute his final dash at her as fast as his aura could take him. And before she could react in the speed of the moment, Jaune's body caught up to his aura and he craned his neck to deliver his match-ending attack.

_zzzrt_.

The redhead froze, the most indescribable mix of emotions and sensations suddenly roaring through her body. Then she blinked.

Blinked as Jaune's handsome face came back into focus.

Blinked again as Ironwood reappeared on the arena.

And blinked a third time as he delivered his short announcement.

_And... by means we weren't quite able to discern through the flying debris, _the General began slowly and almost unsurely, _the match winner is... Jaune Arc! Congratulations! _

Then turning to face the audience, he continued with renewed impetus,_ There will now be a short interlude for minor repairs to the arena and preparations for the final match before the finalists are called to the stage! Thank you all!_

Pyrrha turned and blinked at her white knight before letting out a surprisingly adorable giggle.

* * *

"What did you do to her?" Ren asked plainly with a faintly curious expression as the knight and flustered Spartan he was supporting on his shoulder due to her seeming inability to walk straight anymore met the rest of their team and friends outside the arena.

"Has she been giggling like that for very long?" Nora joined in as well with a surprisingly serious countenance before breaking the façade, "Cuz I think it's _cute!~_"

Jaune could only shrug as he replied with some concern, "Uh yeah, since the match ended a few minutes ago actually..."

"Teehee~" was Pyrrha's only response, a semi-permanent blush still present on her features.

"But going along with what Ren said," Neptune mentioned quizzically, "Seriously, what did you do to her? Cuz if I didn't know any better I'd say you-"

"I kissed her, okay!" Jaune replied quickly, not wanting to hear any speculation on what could be the cause of his partner's complete breakdown of composure.

"Wait..." Ruby began in confusion, "You did that to her with just a kiss?"

It was now Jaune who was beginning to blush as he replied, "Well uh... I... might've put some of May's semblance onto the point of contact..."

A brief moment of silence befell the group as their gazes slowly converged on what looked like a hickey on the neck of the four-time Mistrali champion.

Never in all of Pyrrha's days had she felt something _quite_ like what Jaune had just caused her to experience. The strangest mix of pleasure and pain, it was as if the electric shock from Jaune's kiss to her exposed neck also shorted out her brain, causing all further thought to be halted until she could register these new sensations coursing through her. After several minutes, it still didn't seem like she was getting anywhere with that.

"Umm... Pyrrha? Pyrrha, you there?" Jaune asked sheepishly, nudging the girl who still hung somewhat loosely from his shoulder.

"Mm? Jaune~" she finally replied through a derpy smile and half-lidded eyes, still somewhat cloudy from the pleasure, "You kissed me~ I-In the neck... I... believe we should do that again sometime..."

"...Huh!?" he replied in what came out as more of a squeak than anything.

And after all of that, Yang finally clicked back into her usual self, her eyes brightening with the golden opportunity presenting itself at her, "She _says_ she'd like you to make sure your next makeout session hurts so good that she springs a _leak_ every time she thinks about it afterwards and-_mmf!_"

Three sets of hands shot themselves out to cover her mouth at once from her three blushing teammates, the miffed brawler reaching up and pulling them down with a huff.

"_Jeez_, I can't even get in _one_-?"

"NO," her team commanded in unison, causing team VNDS, May and the present Terra to burst out in laughter.

"Lame," Yang acquiesced with a sigh before glancing at the Spartan with an almost forlorn smirk, "But consider yourself lucky, Nikos. That kind of feeling from the right person... is a once in a lifetime thing."

Finally recovering, Pyrrha could only return a small smile of condolence before the students were interrupted by Ozpin's action of clearing his throat on the loudspeakers.

_Ahem, it is now time for the final round to begin. Please return to your seats. I repeat, please return for your seats... Jaune Arc and Warren Peece, please return to the arena._

"Well," Jaune began with a sigh, "I guess it's about that time..."

"Oh I think you can spare a minute or two more," a familiar new voice began from behind the group, causing everyone to turn their heads in surprise at its source, "Besides, it's not like the walls are caving in or anything."

Jaune's eyes widened before answering, "_Dad!_"

"You look surprised," he continued smugly, Jane beside him as well with a motherly grin of excitement, "As _if_ we would miss your first tournament finals... It's practically an Arc milestone, man!"

"Well _yeah_ I'm surprised, you have your leg to worry about, remember!?" Jaune asked with concern.

"Jaune," Jane now began sweetly, "It's fine. And you know your father - once he gets something in his head, it's nigh impossible to get him to change his mind..."

"So _that's_ where Jaune gets it from," Ruby remarked off-handedly from the side with a chuckle, earning a playful glare from the knight.

And casting a near identical glare that could only be so similar among relatives at her husband, Jane smirked as she continued, "And of course, he brought his injury upon himself after disregarding my clear orders to maintain our ranks during that Grimm invasion~ I'd have helped him myself, but couldn't hear his wailing over the percussion grenade that went off in the Goliath next to me. I was partially deaf for the rest of the week."

"Oh _please_, that's nothing," John light-heartedly retorted with a wave of his hand, "I'm partially color blind."

"_Retinal scarring_," Jane shortly elaborated at the gawking students, "From staring straight into an explosion he caused by throwing a Deathstalker into a giant vat of Red Dust right in front of him with his bare hands."

Unsurprisingly enough, John grinned as he continued while holding up his hand indicatively, "I can't feel anything in these three fingers."

Rolling her eyes as she internally fought back a chuckle, Jane began her own list, pointing at each affected area of hers as if reminding her husband for the millionth time, "Three ribs... Broken eye-socket... Perforated eardrum~"

"Marks of authentic Hunter battle damage," he responded airily before turning to his son with a smirk and shrug, "But the important thing is, a Hunter can also be remembered by their feats in the arena! And Jaune, today could be the beginning of an incredible journey for your Huntsmanship!"

"I dunno about 'incredible' with injuries like _those_-ACK!" Sun began before being cut off by a sharp nudge to the side from Neptune.

"You both must've faced a wide array of famed Hunters in your day!" a beaming Pyrrha mentioned to the Arcs, to which the father boyishly chuckled much like Jaune would oft do.

"Ah well, they've been a few. Come to think about it, I don't think I've ever kept count heh!" he began while sheepishly scratching his head much like his son before turning to his wife, "Tell me, how many have _you_ beat, Jane?"

"Does it matter?" the maternal Arc questioned with a raised brow in amusement.

"Should I go first?"

"Okay."

"Well like I said, I don't exactly keep count, but... I would say... high fifties, low sixties," he recalled confidently, awed looks slowly appearing on the students' faces.

John smirked as he then tried to play down his impressive stats in an attempt at modesty, "I've been around the block, but the important thing is-"

"Three hundred and twelve," Jane suddenly interrupted, to which everyone's jaw dropped to the floor simultaneously... but none quite more so than that of her own husband's.

"_Three hundred and twelve?_" he echoed incredulously, "How?"

She then shrugged much like her son would as she replied simply, "Some were two at a time."

"I think you've gotten _all_ your mannerisms from your parents one way or another," Pyrrha whispered playfully at the knight while his father turned away from the group for a moment.

Jane, knowing her husband, frowned with concern at his action... but her eyes showed quite the opposite light in them as she meekly called his attention, "Honey?"

He held out a hand in a motion to stop, his pride evidently wounded as he spoke up, "I'm... Just..."

But before he could make a coherent reply, a feminine giggle interrupted him that had the students turning their heads to a new source once more.

"Oh my~ Comparing stats again, I see. C'mon dad, you know mom was a beast with her glaives back in the day!"

Jaune's eyes widened once more as he recognized the stylishly dressed young woman in her glasses and distinctive cerulean highlight instantly, "_Anne!?_ -OOF!"

And now nearly tackled as another young woman wearing a simple dress and a headband clung to him, he barely kept his balance as he exclaimed again, "_Catherine!?_"

"Yo, doesn't that girl in the print dress look a lot like that Felicity Smoak chick in the vigilante hero TV show?" Neptune whispered to Sun as he watched the elder of the two new blonde and blue-eyed girls with curiosity.

"For once, I find myself agreeing with your references Neptune," Blake unexpectedly whispered back from Sun's other side as the monkey-faunus nodded blankly.

"Oh? Who are they, Jaune?" Pyrrha asked with some surprise at the sudden addition of young women in the group.

"Well," the elder of the two girls in the print dress began with a confident smirk, "As Jaune so boyishly pointed out, _I'm_ Anne and _she's_ Carherine, Jaune's number one sisters!~"

"_Hey!_" May cried out from the side with an adorably upset pout.

But paying no heed to the youngest Arc, Anne merely trained her gaze on the Spartan, a curious glint in her eyes slowly morphing into one of recognition as she took in the form of the divinely proportioned Huntress-in-training and her unmistakeable attire.

"And _you_ are Pyrrha Nikos!" Anne exclaimed with a snap of her fingers.

Pyrrha cocked her head to the side, clearly intrigued by this well-to-do young lady who judging by her circumstance would have no real idea who the Mistrali champion even was. But while the remaining students - including Jaune and May - returned to hounding the Arc parents about tournament stories, the Spartan was left alone with Anne and Catherine off to the side.

"Yes... I am," the redhead finally replied.

"I knew it!" Anne replied joyfully, "You see, I'm the one who designed your armor under co-sponsorship from Pumpkin Pete's! It was really hard to find the perfect combination of flexible metal and cloth but yep I did it! Say, you got any comments on it? Lay 'em on me!"

Actually taking a good look at her armor and recalling the lengths she had to go through at first to avoid any wardrobe malfunctions during combat, Pyrrha replied slowly with a light blush.

"It... _is_ a bit... revealing."

"Well that's the point!" the fashionista exclaimed with a grin, "A combo of _strong_ and _sexy!_ I bet you had all the boys swooning at first sight!"

"Not _all_ the boys..." Pyrrha remarked softly, her first encounter with the white knight briefly flashing through her mind.

"Ohhh... that's _right_. You're thinking about Jaune, aren't you?" Anne observed slowly in realization, to which the Spartan meekly nodded, "But we ended up hearing you two became an item or something?"

"I bet Jaune has already attacked her in her sleep," Catherine now spoke up with an accusatory glare at the Pyrrha, shorter than the Spartan but definitely at least a few months older than her, "I mean, just look at her body! What do they _feed_ you kids to get like that!?"

"H-He has not!" Pyrrha defended with a surprising tinge of disappointment in her voice.

"Oh, so _you're_ the one who attacks _him_ then?"

"I do not! Nor do I believe we are at that stage in our relationship... E-Even if one of us wouldn't really mind it," she retorted once more, though she drew back at how her shaky tone had betrayed her once again toward the end.

"No way!" Catherine maintained adamantly, "There's _no way_ you two haven't attacked each other already! How could he resist that clearly-not-eighteen-year-old body of yours?"

"I... I do not know!" Pyrrha replied with a crimson blush, crossing her arms tightly under her shapely chest and gaze set to the floor as she now slumped a bit dejectedly.

At that, Anne was struck with an idea... an idea not uncommon to many businesswomen. But Anne Arc was no businesswoman. She was a costume designer and artist who worked for hire in Vacuo, but if her years bugging her little brother had taught her anything, it was how to identify a grade-A sucker.

"Alright then Miss Nikos," Anne began with a sultry tone, moving to Pyrrha's side and wrapping her arm around the spartan's shoulder, "Or can I call you Pyrrha?"

"Of cours-"

"Well Pyrrha dear, I'd like to make you an offer. See, I'm sure you've likely still got plenty of bank left over from your winnings as champion of those tournaments my employer sponsored you for... but a girl like me? I can hardly make ends meet. So, all I'm offering is modest payment from your ample lien reserves in return for some... _pictures_."

And before Pyrrha could react - or pull away - Anne moved in closer until the two girls were practically check to cheek as the sly Arc simultaneously whipped out her own scroll and powered it on, a gallery of pictures now appearing on screen.

Pyrrha's eyes widened, her mouth loosened, and it was quite possible that her nose wasn't as dry as it was a moment ago.

"Like what you see?~ The thing is, I'm kind of a prodigy when it comes to costume design. Have been all my life... it's my jam on toast! But even though my sisters didn't particularly like being all gussied up, Jaune would _never_ fail to volunteer... Pyrrha, you of _all_ people know how kind Jaune is, even if at times he can be a bit of a..."

"Dense idiot?" Catherine added with a raised brow.

"Yes, what Catherine said," Anne continued, "And here we have tuxedo, formal, casual, pajamas, fireman, sailor, eastern, punk, and that's just a small part of the male clothing! Jaune could actually look good as a girl, y'know. I heard he had worn a dress to your school dance earlier this year, too. Wonder why he didn't mind in the slightest? Well-conditioned training-slash-volunteering in wearing all my costumes and dresses! So Pyrrha, do you want some of these or not? Normally, one could go for twenty lien... but I'll hand them over for ten lien a pop 'cuz I like you."

Ogling the pages of pictures of her boyfriend in various stages of dress and undress had Pyrrha vacantly nodding before she quickly shook herself out of it and replaced the wallet that she'd already begun taking out of her belt pouch.

"W-Wait... I can't do this. Besides, there were a lot of pictures. I couldn't possibly spend so much money at once..."

At that, Anne made a brilliant attempt at looking dejected before hugging her new acquaintance even tighter and placing her scroll in Pyrrha's hands.

"Look, I totally understand. Really, I do. There are indeed lots of pictures, hundreds maybe. So many different shots of Jaune in a wide array of costumes over the years, even _I'd_ hardly know which ones to pick out as my favorites! So I'll cut you some slack. Since you're the one still wearing the armor I designed for you, if you buy all the pictures I'll practically _gift_ them to you at a _fifty percent discount!_"

"Bu-"

"-But wait, there's more!~ As a bonus for having managed to actually become his girlfriend, I'll even throw in his Calvin Klein underwear photo gallery into the deal for _FREE_. So Pyrrha- or _sister_, may I call you sister?~ Now sister, whaddaya say?"

"I... I... C-Calvin Klein..."

"You might wanna wipe your nose. Looks like it's bleeding or something."

"T-Thank you," Pyrrha replied as she wiped off the beginnings of a nosebleed, "But..."

"Going _once_..."

"I'll get the checkbook!" Pyrrha declared as she stashed the scroll in her pouch and dashed to the JNPR dorm at near light-speed.

Catherine walked up to the chuckling Anne as they waited for the Mistrali to return.

"Looks like you still got it, Anne."

"What can I say? Though to be honest, I never thought I'd be selling these again after Jaune transferred out of public school. Who knew these Huntresses-in-training would be as weak to Jaune's charm as regular schoolgirls?"

"But still," Catherine continued with pursed lips in her irked state, "I never would've guessed Jaune could make a girl with a reputation and body like _that_ fall for him... I never had curves like that when I was her age."

Anne deadpanned at her sister, "You've never had curves _period_. I guess we can blame the ole Arc family curse on the female form for that..."

"Unless you're _May_," Catherine hedged as both young women turned to look at their sister whose body mostly resembled that of Yang's before looking down at their own less-endowed assets and letting out a simultaneous huff of dejection.

"I'm back!" the grinning Spartan proclaimed as she returned with checkbook in hand. No sooner had the transaction been made when a voice came out through the loudspeakers.

_Once again, we call Jaune Arc to the arena._

"Well, I guess it's time," John stated with a sigh before suddenly furrowing his brows, "Wait... is that old man Ozpin?"

"Old man?" Jaune asked quizzically.

"Yep. He's been around for a _long_ time. Heck, he was Headmaster back when _I_ used to go here! I swear that man hasn't aged a day past thirty save for that white hair."

"Vin always had something to say about that, too," Jaune mumbled under his breath before being prodded in the arm by Pyrrha.

"It's time," she began with an ear-to-ear grin before giving him a kiss - a chaste one on the cheek due to the immediate presence of his parents - before continuing, "I know you can win this. We'll be rooting for you!"

"We are with you always," Jane added, walking up to the knight and giving him a warm hug before he entered the arena.

* * *

Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.

Jaune stood in nearly the same spot he'd been in about an hour ago, except this time there were only two.

_Congratulations on reaching the final round_, Ozpin began coolly from the platform, _This year's Vytal Tournament finals will be judged by Classic Tournament rules_ \- _first contestant whose aura drops to the red is eliminated. Are you both ready?_

Jaune and Warren nodded, to which the Headmaster replied from the loudspeakers, _Very well, the match will begin shortly. Good luck._

The knight gave the professor a small smile, the Headmaster turning and leaving the arena before Warren turned to his soon-to-be opponent.

"Not bad, _gringo_," he began with hardly concealed condescension, "To be honest, I didn't doubt that you'd win the previous match. If you ask me, I'm surprised women are permitted to become Huntresses at all!"

His aura immediately threatening to lash out at the insolent Atlesian, Jaune narrowed his eyes as he responded instead, "I see what you're doing... You try and get in your opponents' heads before the fight even begins to give yourself an edge. Not very Hunter-like if you ask _me_."

"Psychology is of no consequence when fighting Grimm," Warren replied simply with a shrug, "But it's too fun to pass up when facing _babosos_ hehe..."

Jaune merely shook his head with the unfamiliar lingo, "I can tell why Cyrus and Yang didn't take well to you."

"Good luck, Arc. _Te hará falta_..." Warren remarked with a chuckle before the signal went off.

_Beep_.

Not bothering to distance themselves from each other, the two finalists didn't break eye contact as they unsheathed their weapons. Jaune continued eyeing the Atlesian candidate cautiously as a suspenseful silence befell the crowded amphitheater, the latter's weapons glowing their respective grey and white colors before making his first strike.

_Shhhing!_

Surprised by a sudden flash of movement, Jaune's eyes widened as he looked down to see half his chest armor cleanly sliced off and clattering on the floor.

"Heh, pretty cheap armor if War could slice through it so easily," Warren stated smugly, "I hope your sword fares better, _gringo_."

And with another clash, Jaune countered the next slash from the grey-toned sai, the Atlesian's face breaking its confident expression for a mere second to give way to a miffed grimace before he unleashed a flurry of dual-sai combinations on Jaune. However, to the surprise of everyone - including Jaune's - he held up to the glowing arcs of grey and white with lucky placement of sword and shield.

"Not bad," was all the student said before blasting the white knight back with an aura pulse from Peace.

'Ack, this guy is _seriously_ fast,' Jaune thought to himself as he stood up from a few feet away, sizing up the sai-wielder in their temporary standoff, 'If I'm gonna stand a chance, I'm gonna have to be lighter!'

Hatching a plan, Jaune tossed aside the chest plate which had been rendered all but useless along with his pauldrons, leaving him in his hoodie and jeans and armed with Crocea Mors as he faced the Atlesian. He watched Warren drop in ready position, both sais held out and waiting before taking a deep breath and focusing on Ruby's semblance.

_Whoosh-CLANNNG!_

And in the blink of an eye, Jaune was now behind Warren with his sword extended, Crocea Mors having landed a visible cut on the student's exposed forearm.

"Ack!" the knight now suddenly grimaced in pain however as he raised his hand to a throbbing pain in his left shoulder only to see that Warren had cut through his hoodie as well, "Why... Why isn't it healing?"

And sure enough, no matter how hard he tried focusing his aura into healing that several-inch long gash in his shoulder, the cut only pulsed white and refused to close.

"_Ay gringo_..."

Jaune looked up with an exasperated expression at the contender as the Atlesian slowly turned to face him with a dark smirk and continued.

"It was a smart move to remove your armor and make yourself lighter - I underestimated your strike speed... But it was _such_ a bad idea on your part."

"What are you talking about!" Jaune growled impatiently, becoming quickly miffed by the Atlesian's evident action of toying with him.

"If you hadn't removed your armor, I wouldn't have been able to land a clean cut with Peace. War may be sharp, but this sai right here is _much_ worse," he remarked with a chuckle as he observed his glowing weapon before leveling a suddenly serious glare at the knight, "You've been cursed with a direct injection of my aura through Peace. It'll nullify your aura's natural healing ability for quite some time unless you defeat me."

"You've _gotta_ be kidding me," Jaune hissed under his breath, his frustration growing as his shield-bearing arm went numb and he was no longer able to support his shield.

Collapsing his shield and placing it on his belt, the white knight then regripped his sword and crouched down with a scowl at the cocky contender before engaging him one more in a blast of Rose petals.

_ffft-CLANG-Whoosh-CLANGCLANG-ffftfft-CLANG!_

Alternating between Ruby's and Vik's semblances, Jaune became a blur and the audience began cheering as they were now seeing what they had come for - a truly impressive brawl between two talented fighters. Pale apparitions appearing all around Warren amid the flurry of red petals, the contender was turning and flipping through the air with fluid and precise movements to counter the speedy advances of his foe, neither finding a large enough opening in the other's defence to exploit.

But finally figuring out Jaune's attack patterns, Warren began gaining the upper hand with nicks and cuts he continued landing hits on Jaune with both sais until the knight finally stopped his constant barrage of sword strikes. Expecting to see the knight panting and defeated, however, Warren was caught by surprise when Jaune instead blasted the contender back with a dazzling bolt of electricity.

"Oh yeah! Got 'im good!~" May exclaimed adorably with a fist pump in the stands.

"H-He can do that!?" Catherine sputtered out in disbelief, to which her youngest sister nodded energetically with a grin.

"Yep! His semblance is Mimicry! He can copy others' semblances and use them at will!"

Anne could only stare at the destruction wide-eyed as she added flatly, "Imagine if he got his hands on Joan's semblance..."

"Which is?" Weiss added with her usual mix of curiosity and nonchalance, wondering what other powerhouse semblance the Arc Family may contain.

"She can manipulate her aura physically much further than that of other Hunters, giving her the ability to move objects telekinetically and to tap into the aura of others," Jane added from behind the group with a proud smile.

Nora cocked a brow at the information, "Like... the Force?"

"Hah, _that'd_ be interesting," Weiss finally replied with a snort, "Jaune Arc... Force-user. There's no way that'd work."

"Never be so quick to judge," Blake teased with a brow raised, "You may be impressed by the potential results."

Any further conversation was put on hold, however, when another thundering crackle of electricity coursed through the arena, missing its target by inches.

Finally having had enough, Warren yelled frustratedly as he threw his hand downwards.

"Wah!" Jaune yelped as he was suddenly thrown backwards by a gust of wind from Warren's impact on the ground, scrambling back to a standing position as quick as he could to face the waiting Atlesian.

But in trying to focus a Ruby-like sprint to re-engage the contender, Jaune overstepped and tripped when the expected speed never came, his form hitting the ground hard before turning up and having to block a downward dual-sai strike from Warren.

"_Ya basta con tus payasadas_," Warren began menacingly as they remained in their locked position, "Without your semblance, you best stay down if you know what's good for you. It's over."

Vigorously fighting off the dampened effect he was feeling on his aura while trying to keep holding off Warren's seasons with essentially only his left arm and sword, Jaune huffed and spat through gritted teeth, "_Never!_"

-_OOM!_

The audience gasped as Jaune quite literally blew away the contender with an aura pulse much stronger than Warren could've anticipated, the blast propelling him into an arena wall.

"So... you're strong enough to continue using your aura despite my semblance," he stated flatly as he climbed out of the wall and dusted himself off, "I'm almost impressed, _gringo_."

And with a burst of speed, the Atlesian began to engage Jaune once again. But despite his best efforts, Jaune couldn't call the semblances he'd acquired to the fore, every attempt at hydrokinesis or polarity failing miserably as he continually parried the sai-wielder's attacks to the best of his abilities. But riposting a high slash from War with Crocea Mors, the knight left himself wide open to Warren who exploited the opportunity with a brutal slash to Jaune's abdomen with Peace.

"Aargh!" the Arc cried out in pain as he fell to the floor with the Atlesian on top of him ready to end the match.

Jaune tried to pulse out his aura once more, but this time Warren was ready. Expanding his own aura out through Peace, he created a shield that countered the force of the knight's blazing aura that flowed out around the contender who had his gray sai inching closer and closer to Jaune's throat.

"I bet you liked that little shank, _muchacho_," Warren cackled with sadistic glee, "You see, there's one more thing you should know about my semblance - once engaged, every aura affected by it losses its ability to dull pain, so expect to be feeling that one for a few days ahaha!"

"You're... Crazy!" Jaune huffed as he continued trying to hold back the blade at his throat with his sword.

"One must be crazy to be a true Hunter, if you can't handle the stress then quit now!" Warren growled as he pushed War ever closer with a savage grin, "Your family, your friends, even your aura... _Nothing_ can help you now!"

_Squish!_

"AAAGH!" Jaune yelled as Peace unexpectedly plunged into his side with excruciating pain, out of the audience's view.

Rushing through every option he could think of in the last second he had left to keep from losing the match without the aid of his semblance, Jaune was finally struck with a desperate idea as the image of Crudus' demise on ADA flashed through his mind.

"No... You're... _Wrong!_" Jaune roared loud enough for everyone to hear, a giant white gauntlet of aura appearing over the contender and yanking him off just as War made contact with Jaune's neck.

Standing up and facing the immobilized Warren who continued trying to resist the projection's grip to no avail eye to eye, Jaune spoke in a dark, deep voice.

"You dared to hurt my friends. You dared to insult my family..." he paused as a second realization took place in mind, "Warren Peece. You say that your semblance nullifies aura's ability to dull pain. Let's see if that includes _you_."

_SHUNK!_

The Atlesian's eyes widened as he looked down to see an aura-projection of a broadsword coming out of his chest. Jaune then twisted his wrist up, the action causing the gauntlet to throw the contender in the air.

_SHUNK! SHUNKSHUNKSHUNKSHUNKSHUNK..._

"Yaaaaaaaaah!" Jaune cried out in primal righteous fury as he held out both arms at the Atlesian, his yell echoing as dozens of aura-projected swords ran through the cruel sai-wielder in midair.

Finally out of breath, Jaune let the unconscious heap of his opponent fall to the arena grounds, the audience sitting in awed silence as they realized Jaune had used his aura to mentally cut down Warren's vitality to within an inch of his life.

Jaune couldn't focus on the Headmaster who promptly appeared at the platform.

Nor could he focus on the announcement of his victory as the entire audience broke out in ground-shaking applause and cheering.

All he could barely register was the forms of his friends and family running onto the arena grounds, his worried girlfriend reaching his dizzy form first and catching him as his legs gave way beneath him.

She barely heard his last words before he finally succumbed to exhaustion, "It is done... It is done."

* * *

"-aune? Jau... Jaune!"

Jaune slowly came to with his body laid out on an infirmary bed, his team and family surrounding him.

"Uuugh," he finally let out in the form of a pained moan, "May? ...What happened?"

Grinning at her conscious brother, May smacked his now-healed shoulder before starting, "You won the _Vytal Tournament,_ you big goof!"

His eyes shot wide open as vague memories began creeping back.

"WHAT!?"

_5 Minutes Later..._

Teams RWBY and VNDS had now entered the infirmary room, everyone enjoying themselves despite the cramped space while retelling Jaune about the conspired events in the final round.

"W-Wait," he began in mild shock, "You're saying I stabbed that guy multiple times with projections!? How's he not _dead_ or something!"

"Because you never meant to kill him," John began reassuringly as he placed a hand on his son's shoulder, "Sure, it looked quite convincing, but it seems your aura only gave him the _sensation_ of being stabbed... his mind did the rest."

"Still... that's a heck of a way to dispatch a jerk, Jaune. Nice job," Yang remarked with an impressed expression.

"I... I guess I must've blacked out during the last part then," Jaune replied with slow realization as he ran a hand through his hair.

"A common effect of an Unbalanced aura, I'm sure," John replied flatly, "Must've gotten you pretty pissed down there if you missed the entire last part of the fight while demolishing him."

"But we're glad you're alright," Pyrrha then added from the other side of his infirmary bed, taking his hand in both of hers with a warm smile.

Watching the caring Spartan, the paternal Arc couldn't help a broad grin as he turned to his son once more, "She's right. You've come a long way Jaune, and I can't even bear to hold in how proud we are of you right now!"

Jaune looked up at his father, eyes watery as the man's words sunk in, "Really?"

"Of _course_, honey," Jane added as she got close and ran her hand through his hair, giving it a playful tussle as she finished, "We always have been. And know we will always be here for you-"

"-No matter what," John finished with a warm smile.

"Aw, thanks guys," Jaune finished as he wrapped his parents in a tight hug, the action squeezing out a tear from his eyes.

"Man, if only everyone else was here to see _this_," Anne mentioned with a warm-hearted smirk, to which her brother glanced at her questioningly.

"Yeah, you're right... Where _is_ everyone else?"

"Well, right now Joan and Yssa are leading a group of Hunters through the Valean forests, starting with the ones around Dorme," Jane began smoothly as the room quieted down to listen, "They were chosen by the council to investigate the sudden drop in Grimm activity and rise in disappearances in the kingdom."

"Oh yeah," Ruby added brightly, glad to contribute, "Me and my team were waiting for the okay to start an investigative report on it soon, it's an end-of-year project we set up to take on under the suggestion of our substitute professor!"

"Professor... Dandelion?" Yang mentioned with a pensive pout, "Yep, Dandelion. He was alright. Struck me as familiar for a second but meh, haven't seen him since."

"The only problem is, these reports have also begun in the other three kingdoms as well," John now added with a grave air, "It may yet be coincidence, but we need to be sure."

The room fell into a brief silence before Catherine chimed in, wishing to change the subject, "And what about Gabby?"

"Mm, Gabriel staged at the Arcade helping Cyrus and Seul with a few outstanding construction projects in town."

"Yeahhh... and for some much-needed together-time after being separated from her boy wonder for a while~" Anne added with her ever-present smirk, "She was all but a recluse before meeting that guy on that conspiracy theory community website."

"That's a thing?" Ren asked with a raised brow.

"Apparently. It's called Rational Theory - ironically - or RT for short."

"Well speaking of recluse," Jaune added inquiringly, "What about Rowenna?"

Jane hummed in though for a moment, hand to chin before supplying a response, "She was sort of vague about it, but mentioned something about finishing another writing project of hers. but she promised shed watch the finals today and I'm sure she's very happy! You know how she is about her literary work."

At the last statement, Yang could've sworn she heard Blake quietly purring in delight at the mention of 'Rowenna' and 'literary works'.

"But all in all, we all got to see something totally awesome today!" Sun now began confidently before turning to the white knight with a grin, "So on behalf of our team, Congrats on winning the tournament and passing The Trials!"

"The Trials?" Jane echoed in curiosity.

"I-It's a term that caught on after General Ironwood was granted the title of Head of Security and added the extra qualifying rounds against the Grimm at the beginning of the tournament," Velvet replied informatively.

"Heh, the thing kids come up with these days," John retorted with a chuckle, "Well then, out of the frying pan and into the fire now for you all."

Nora scrunched her nose at the remark, "Eh?"

"My dad means to say that he thinks the action isn't over for us yet," Jaune responded smiling at his teammate's usual antics, "He'd probably describe it as the Eye of the Storm, right dad?"

"You got it," John quipped with pride at being referenced, "But I could've been wrong when I said the storm was that hell you all faced in the forests out there."

"I know," Jaune replied solemnly, furtively glancing at the somber brawler before looking back at his father as the entire room now seemed to focus on him, "There's always a fair chance that with whatever these abductions and changes in Grimm activity mean... the Storm is just beginning."

* * *

**A/N: *panting* PHEW! I've had this chapter written out in my head for at least a month but actually putting it down on paper just right was really something! :O I really really hope you guys like the chapter and can settle with it as being the launchpad into Volume 3! And of course, I had to bring Jaune's family into this again, they needed more screen time hah, and I even got to do a parallel-universe thing with the fic that Jaune's sisters are based on! ^.^ If you catch the references, then you know what I mean!**

**And for the last time in Volume 2 - Time for some thank-you notes!**

***SpanishBulldog63: Thank you! And yep, if only Yang knew Spanish... And yes, after reading your review I reaized Weiss sounded a little Bane-like haha :) I hope your other questions got answered!**

***GUEST: I'm sorry I made you cry :(**

***le BlekSzedou: Thank you! And I hope you're satisfied ;)**

***Mattysteel: Thank you! Yea, OC requests are closed and I'm flattered by the request; however, I'm not sure I could do an idea like yours justice :/ Tell you what, if you'd like to write out your own fic, feel free to use my characters! :) and thanks, the break was nice!**

***KaptainKaveman: Thank you! You can't win 'em all and I believe fiction should reflect that! :D**

***Guest: Yea me too... Had to be done :/**

***Crimsons Sword: So you know the song? So cool! X)**

***Dj182: Thank you! And yes, I've always wanted to see Ruby VS Weiss instead of Ruby 'paired' with Weiss, so I made it happen ^.^ And I'm working on spelling and grammar, so feel free to point anything out so I can fix them asap! I'm gonna say 'no comment' to the Wind Rose thing :)**

***tylerlb14: Thank you! Yeah I feel bad about Yang... and well, Warren got what was coming to him!**

***Tommy2486: Thank you! I was hyped too, and yes I'm revamping all of Volume 1 currently so I have to say both :)**

***TheBluePsychoticStrategist: Thank you! You called it, and yes, there's still much more stage to be set.**

***Lazerkorn51104: Thank you! And you're always a great help, so thanks :)**

**And with all that being said, there is indeed more to come so stay tuned for the epilogue: _The Turned!_ In the meantime, feel free to fave, follow and review if you haven't yet :D**

**Happy Reading!**


	68. Vol 2 Epilogue: The Turned

_**Epilogue: The Turned**_

* * *

Nighttime in the Emerald Forest.

A soft breeze quietly brushes past the lush vegetation, the muted sounds only highlighting the still air that permeates the entirety of the area.

_Crack_.

A single snap of bone.

_Crunch crunch crunch..._

A figure among the bushes feeds on an unidentifiable mass of meat and tattered clothing, hunched over its meal as a destroyed set of camera equipment lies discarded beside them. A familiar presence causes the figure to look up, a glint of its hair flashing in the dim moonlight.

"Come now," the aged, raspy voice beckons through the shrubbery, "meal time is over."

"_Uhh... uhhhhnn,_" the figure moans in response as it gets up to its feet and slowly hobbles over to its guardian, its once-fashionable attire all but lain to waste and barely providing it coverage from the elements.

Not that it can really sense the weather anymore.

The two figures now approach the dreary Cliffside where a third awaits, the vista overlooking the dim lights of Vale and the green glow of Beacon. The third figure, shrouded in darkness but with a green bioluminescent glow outlining its eyes and bulky full-body carapace down to its lethal tail, slightly turns its oblong head towards the newcomers with an ever-present scowl on its eye-less face.

"Your scent is appalling. I could easily smell you coming."

The larger of the two newcomers, equally shrouded but with a dim purple glow around its more regal-looking body armor, stops in his tracks and turns to his companion who stops next to him instinctually.

"Don't be so drab, Venamis," the figure in purple states slowly with a hitch in its seemingly weakened voice, "the body she was feeding on has only recently entered in rigor."

"Contemptible fool," Venamis hisses in reply as he now faces them completely, "dragging around one of the Turned like a _pet! _You do realize what you'll end up doing to her, don't you Gravid?"

But seeming not to consider his peer's reprimands, Gravid merely contemplates the third one of the group with a forlorn sigh.

"Ohhh, if only we had met in another time... I'd have had you grace my hand in matrimonial union..."

However, before Venamis could launch a fresh slew of berating remarks, Gravid turned his dull gaze to him, his pale purple eyes flashing with renewed vigor like from some ancient ghost.

"...and yes. I know perfectly well what I _can_ do to her," and spotting a young man ambling about the bushes nearby, Gravid then reaches out with a malicious smirk and yanks the bystander by the collar until they're nearly face to face, "Yet there are sooo many others to feed off _first_..."

And opening his jaw to grotesque proportions, Gravid holds the weakly squirming kid tight, the brain-dead young man only able to aimlessly open and shut his jaw in a biting motion as a black mist begins emerging from every pore in his body into the hybrid Grimm's gaping maw of a mouth.

As the process continues, Venamis watches with a mix of wicked mirth and contempt as the young man begins to shrivel up into little more than bones and skin before Gravid drops the lifeless heap to the floor.

"Hmm," he begins, audibly smacking his now normal-sized mouth as if having enjoyed a tasty meal, "That one was especially re-invigorating. I wonder what his name was?"

Snorting disdainfully at the strange remark, Venamis merely glances at the dead boy before impaling him with his tail and lifting him up to the light for them to see, "The name is here on the back of this ridiculous cap..."

"Pan... Pe-ter Pan," Gravid enunciates slowly in the night, all signs of weakness in his voice now gone before deadpanning at the scowling hybrid, "How ironic. I guess he'll never grow up after all."

"You just _had_ to kill the one dressed in green..." Venamis spits at his fellow General as he tosses the corpse over the cliff with a flick of his tail, hatred practically seething through his voice.

"Of _all_ the the things that could irk a being such as yourself," Graved teases with morbid joviality, "You had to choose something as trivial as _that_."

"As if you fare differently," Venamis remarks snidely with a cursory glance at the third figure in the group.

The General merely shakes his head at the assumption, "No no, her attire and hair color are most definitely _not_ purple, they're _lavender_. In either case, a rather attractive choice even in her current state."

"You disgust me, fallen duke."

Gravid chuckles darkly at the epithet, "It's been centuries since you last called me that."

"Since the last time you _fed_ yourself, imbecile," Venamis adds sharply.

But taking no offense, Gravid merely gives a faint nod of acknowledgment, a small gesture that goes unseen in the shroud of night, before continuing, "Well you know how I am, comrade. I absolutely _detest_ gorging myself with these mongrels. The mere sensation of their convoluted energy flowing through me is repulsive."

"Of course it is, fool," Venamis replies flatly, "Yet here we are, columns of power and time immemorial... and soon, of immortality itself!"

Gravid walks over to the cliff edge, absently nodding at the General's short tirade before humming to himself in satisfaction.

"Well, at least these mortals are good for _something_..."

"Yes," Venamis concurs, his lethal blade-tipped tail slowly swishing behind him in excitement as he joins Gravid by the cliff edge and contemplates the horde of Turned victims teeming along the forest floor below them, "at least when powered and controlled by our Dark Energy..."

"...they make an _excellent_ army."

* * *

_Snap_.

"Ow!"

_Whick!_

"_Youch!_"

"..."

"_Look_, prowling about the woods ain't exactly my _scene_, alright!?"

Elsewhere, in Fall Forest, yet another branch whacks a bemused Roman in the face, prompting the criminal to pull Melodic Cudgel at the offending tree and to blow it to smithereens.

"Ya kno, Ah have noo idea how you're able tah even oonderstand that lassie," a grimly amused Cyn remarks at the peeved thief beside him.

"And I have no idea how anyone's even able to understand _you_, kid," Roman smartly quips in reply, causing the short girl with the group to somehow chuckle without a single sound escaping her lips.

"Aye, but at leest ahm no' the one walkin aroond with a face like a skelped erse."

"I'm going to pretend I didn't understand that... because I honestly _didn't_," Roman sighs with a facepalm, which unfortunately blinds him to the branch he promptly walks into and knocks off his cap, "Ack!"

The multi-colored girl silently glances towards the front of the group before looking back at her boss with a questioning gaze.

"..."

"Yes, we are following a strange woman - _if_ she's even human - through the woods in the middle of the night because I actually feel like _surviving_ until morning."

"..."

"I _know_ we haven't seen any Grimm, Neo. But I'm in _no_ mood to take the chance either, okay!?"

The girl rolls her eyes at the miffed criminal, idly twirling her umbrella around herself before striding to his front and pointing at herself indicatively.

"...oh. You can teleport. Why didn't I think of that before?"

"Because it won't work here," a steely voice abruptly interrupts from the front of the group, the three miscreants looking to its bony-masked owner shrouded in an ethereal red glow.

"Whaddare yae yalkin aboot?" Cyn asks with a raised brow.

"I permitted your associate's entry into our vicinity, but her particular semblance will be of no use while I'm using mine..."

The strange figure in red hadn't even finished speaking when Neo tried multiple times to phase out of the area, her body only managing to momentarily half-disappear in a puff of wispy pink aura but otherwise still remaining in the same spot. After several failed attempts to teleport, she shoots an alarmed glare at her employer, his confused expression gaining equal measures of alarm as he glances at the figure in red.

"Why would you do that!? Didn't you and your pals say we were of _use_ to you!?" Roman sighs in frustration before continuing with a bit more restraint, "It's been months since Dorme fell apart and we're still just trudging about in the woods like some Boy Scouts!"

"!"

"_Ugh_... and Girl Scout."

"It's an unexpected effect," the figure begins in explanation, "But each of our semblances influence the time-space continuum, and apparently mine is causing interference with your friend's."

"Alright," Cyn manages to state through his scowl at their lost chance of escape, "And wha' aboot the bit oaf us bein oaf use to yae?"

"Once again, something I can explain by virtue of my semblance," the figure states, its voice clearly feminine if anything, "I have my orders to... establish communication... with my target, and I saw you three would be integral to my end goal."

Neo cocks her head to the side at the statement, "..."

"Yeah," Roman agrees, "What do you mean by _saw?_"

The figure runs its gauntlet through its long raven-colored hair with a sigh before continuing, "My semblance is unique; some may call me a seer, of sorts."

"Like... a clairvoyant or something?" Roman asks, his usual snarky attitude overcome for once by his genuine curiosity.

"_Or something_ would be preferred. I can sense a presence through time - where it's been, and sometimes where it's going to be. It's a delicate balance of intertwined fates that expends great amounts of energy and disrupts any related space-time anomalies nearby. And though it may not always be clear, I knew you three would be here. I led myself and my fellow Generals here because of it. They sensed your energies; I sense something of far greater use."

Cyn, not usually being one to keep up with enigmatic conversation, huffs and replies, "And tha' woold _be_...?"

"_To be determined_," the figure declares harshly, interrupting the youth mid-sentence.

And being of short temper, Cyn takes advantage of the escalating tension and pulls out the dual falx blades he had stolen from Emerald as his eyes light up with the fire Dust within him.

"Look... Zannah, is it? Wha' if we _refuse_ tah go along with yer grand plan?" he asks with malicious intent practically dripping from his voice.

But no sooner does he finish the question when the figure unsheathes its telescoping blood-red katana in the blink of an eye and places it in the nook of Cyn's throat with a swift laido motion, the sheer brandishing of the weapon causing even Neo's eyes to switch white in fright as she grips Roman's coat and takes a step behind him.

"Then Tensenken will have his first mortal kill on Remnant in _ages_," the masked figure states with the smirk underneath the mask practically coming through in its voice, "Would you like that?"

Slowly sheathing his weapons, being careful to keep the pressure between his skin and the incredibly sharp blade from causing enough damage than it already had, Cyn cautiously clears his throat while raising both unarmed hands in the air.

"Er... uh, no."

"Good," the figure quipps almost snarkily, "because we've arrived at the location I needed us to be."

Roman slowly lifts the hem of his cap and takes a long look around the dark forest, "There's nothing here."

"You'll see soon enough," Zannah sighs nonchalantly before turning the revolver-like chamber near the hilt of her blade, a myriad of colors from different forms of Dust glowing before settling on a crimson red one, "Wait here. All your questions shall be answered shortly."

Roman, Cyn and Neo gasp in surprise - though the latter does so silently - as Zannah suddenly turns without another word and slashes open a large wormhole in the air, the red portal glowing for a second before she steps through and it closes behind her.

Neo shivers in a final attempt to get Zannah's intimidating presence out of her system before casting Roman a cursory glance.

"I'm not sure what she meant by that, Neo," the criminal begins simply, a sudden instinct from within causing him to tense up and focus on his surroundings.

"Well why doont we git tha' jessie 'ere tah beam us oot, Scotty!?" Cyn exclaims snidely at Roman, the same instincts kicking in as well while Neo shoots the hooded young man a murderous glare.

"_Shush!_" Roman cuts in, holding his hand out to stop any fight before it begins, "I think I hear-"

"_Over there!_"

"_There they are!_"

"_You three, stop right there!_"

And suddenly surrounded by a dozen different figures, the three associates go back to back ready to fight until Roman gets a good look at them and relaxes.

"Oh am I glad to see _you_ idiots!" the criminal chuckles as he recognizes the White Fang gear they're all wearing. Definitely patrol scouts by the looks of them.

"_Don't move!_"

"_You're in a highly restricted area and we've already called in for backup!_"

"..._So stay where you are!_"

With the three remarks in reply from a few other soldiers of the group, Roman deadpans and takes a step forward despite the rapidly increased amount of weapons now pointed at him.

"You _kidding_ me?" he now begins, apparently ticked off, "You mutts don't recognize Roman Torchwick when you _see_ him!?"

Watching the soldiers trade uncertain glances and realizing it had been some time since his motivational speech at the unveiling of the Paladin, Roman facepalms and continues through gritted teeth, "Roman _Torchwick_, partner of the now-late Cinder Fall in her dealings with your organization. I need to find your superior to _explain_ to him our current situation and the final outcome of the Dorme incursion... not that they'll listen to me."

But before any further orders to subdue the angry cane-wielder can be stated, every Faunus' ears twitch simultaneously and they stand down, immediately aware of the presence for which they move aside to give clear passage to Roman.

Neo, Roman and Cyn then cock their heads at the appearance of a tall man in a custom tuxedo and distinct White Fang mask, his bull horns barely showing through his hair that rustles in the slight breeze while he approaches Roman with his hand resting idly on his blade girded by his waist.

"No," the man begins coolly in agreement, "But they'll listen to _me_."

* * *

'_Another fine demonstration of your skill, General Zannah._'

From several hundred yards above the meeting point between Roman's group and the White Fang, Zannah reaches up to her mask to reply to the communiqué, her outpost overlooking a large breadth of the forest along with a lone train track running through it nearby.

"Thank you. I presume you have left the area already?"

'_Of course,_' the voice replies, '_I can only do so much in my human form; my staying any longer after the tournament could've proved a liability to my true nature._'

"A wise measure, Commander. I'm currently sensing an energy surge in the area - I believe this location is optimal to activate my semblance's primary functions."

'_I see no reason not to. You've arranged your pawns and Venamis along with Gravid have assembled our army. __Proceed_.'

And from her location, Zannah concentrates as her aura coalesces around her like a thick fog, sealing her inside a now translucent sphere from which she begins to pick out the past, present and future presence of any aura-user by the color and nature of their aura.

"This spot is charged with several aural signatures," she begins slowly, picking out the myriad of colors that float about in her chamber of augmented reality like hundreds of fireflies, "Many that have already met here... and many more to come."

'_...You sense a future confrontation in that area?_'

"Yes," the red swordswoman replies factually, "The two men we found along with the eldest's hired mercenary will be here again with the bull-faunus... and... I sense seven other aural signatures confronting them."

'_Any clue on their identities?_' the voice replies with an increasing tone of restrained anticipation.

"I can only sense two outstanding signatures... a young female... who has been here before..."

'_Interesting_...'

"And-" the breath of the swordswoman unexpectedly hitches as she ascertains the identity of the other, "My target."

A chilling dark chuckle emanates through the line before the Commander replies, '_Doubtlessly the result of your imminent interference. Will you begin your cognitive connection with her now?_'

"I... I'm not sure," Zannah slowly continues as her semblance suddenly begins to strain under the scrupulous evaluation of the shifting future, "In initiating contact now, I shift the course of future events and can now sense an _eighth_ presence alongside them when they return... much, _much_ more powerful!"

'..._Could it be?_'

"One of the Unbalanced? Difficult to tell, my interference has already begun to cloud the signatures," Zannah remarks balefully as she reaches her critical point, her primary semblance now ceasing to function as the sphere comes down around her.

'_Then there's no more to speak of. Initiate contact immediately._'

"But there's no telling what will happen after they meet," the swordswoman cautiously warns, "I'm no longer able to connect to a certain timeline once I've reached my limit. Doing so a second time may change the course of these aural signatures once more."

'_Of course. Such is the case with time. The future is a delicate affair... if you look into it, it changes, merely for the reason that you looked at it. You have your orders, Zannah._'

"Very well," she replies before the line goes dead.

Looking over the fast expanse of dim red foliage in the night, the lone swordswoman takes a seat on her outpost - not much more than a rocky outcropping on the side of one of many steep cliffs that come out of the Fall Forest - and leans back for a minute, taking in the moonlight and regaining her strength.

"Can it really be that you're still alive?"

Softly shaking away the thought, the Red General sits up and readies herself for the process that would remove all doubt. Crossing her legs in front of her, she calms herself and evens her breath, willing her heartbeat down to a snail's crawl as she focuses all of her bodily processes into a minimalistic state. Now redirecting her crimson red aura into her mind, a small smirk graces her lips as she engages in an impossible feat of finding the needle in the haystack.

'Now for the fun part...'

* * *

Nighttime at Beacon.

'It almost seems surreal... how nothing has changed yet everything feels different.'

The swordswoman walks along the paved paths, roads that symbolized an ideal to a civilization against fearfully stacked odds on the other side of their walls. Yet here they were, countless youths striving to hold up to that ideal.

Of course, this isn't actually Beacon.

The woman walks along the paved paths, contemplating past, present and future before coming across the statue. The memorial of The Great War.

'This is as good a place as any.'

The swordswoman stops walking.

And waits.

But not for long.

_Clack clack clack..._

Eyes widen behind the mask as a mane of golden blonde hair comes into view, a young woman catching sight of her and nearly engaging her gauntlets for combat on instinct. But instead, said instinct compels her to lower her guard and approach the woman until they are only a few dozen feet apart.

"Who are you?"

'Oho, I couldn't even _begin_ to say...'

The Red General removes her Grimm mask, her long jet-black hair now coming down freely in the dreamscape wind and her eyes glowing a ruby red in her irises, the blonde's jaw hanging open at the otherwise striking resemblance between them.

"Yang, we have a lot to talk about."

* * *

**A/N: So many reveals haha... I hope it makes up for my brief hiatus! :) Lets just say I fly around the world now and it eats into my writing time. But enough about me; Volume 2 is finally wrapped up and all pretty! :D Once again, I want to thank you guys so so much for having stuck with _Chronicle_ through thick and thin and finally having helped cross that milestone I'd never thought I'd reach in FFnet: 100 followers! You guys are the best! And as promised, time for a sneak peek at the three new OC teams: eight characters submitted by you awesome readers and that will be playing integral roles in the final Volume - _The Storm..._**

_A skilled Mage whose powerful staff could give Velvet's growing abilities a run for her money, a talented Bear-Faunus fated for legend, and two familiar faces bearing the guise of Cloak and Dagger come together to help our heroes save a kingdom from a dark fate._

**TEAM BOSS**

_A team with twin everything: an elemental merc with twin shortswords that combine to make a dust-wielding broadsword, a cold leader with a twin in her crosshairs, and well... a pair of actual twins. But if it's one thing they really share in common, it's the fact that they get whatever they want... on a whim._

**TEAM WEMM**

_A defeated contender, a face from one hero's darker past with bad blood and a bone to pick, and a couple with complexes in a league of their own threaten the quest and lives of all whom they meet... a team who just may live up to their name._

**TEAM WCKD**

**And there you have it! :) But wait... eight submitted OCs, but _twelve_ characters in three teams? Hehe, we may see a few unexpected faces after all... :D**

**But speaking of unexpected, I bring good tidings! There may be a chance that even if your OC didn't make it on this list of characters to be revealed, he or she may still make an appearance in the fic! More info to come soon... I hope you guys don't mind the lack of thank-you notes in view of this info as well. I'll be shooting back personal responses :)**

**And so, the stage is set for Volume 3. **

**Stay tuned for the first chapter which will come out after I've updated my other fics - which I haven't updated in forever - _Echoes_!**

**So as always, take care...**

**And Happy Reading!**


	69. Vol 3 Prologue: The Grave

**_The Grave_**

* * *

"Yang, we have a lot to talk about."

The blonde brawler stood there in the empty Beacon courtyard - no movement, breeze, or even sound other than her breathing as she sized up the mysterious red swordswoman.

"A great start would be your _name_, lady."

Cracking a smile that seemed to brighten her red eyes and send a slight chill down Yang's spine, the woman replied coolly, "I am known by many names. Knowing even one of them would hardly be of any benefit to you... But most know me as Zannah."

"Okayyy, you're right about the name part at least. So who _are_ you exactly?"

Taking a step closer, her heel resounding through the dreamscape as it clicked against the pavement, the woman grinned and let out an unexpected laugh as she regarded the young blonde, "Forgive me... I simply find it so intriguing that so much trouble is being taken over you... that you're actually _here_... But _I_, I am no one of consequence. You wouldn't even remember."

"Remember?" The blonde echoed faintly, suddenly beginning to feel lightheaded.

"Yes," the woman continued, her smile fading as she noticed Yang falter in her stance, "But I'm here because-e-e-e..."

Yang no longer could pay attention to the woman, the entire dreamscape slowly spinning and swimming through her vision until she fell on her knees.

"Uuugh, I'm really gonna have a nasty headache when I wake up, I just _know_ it," Yang hedged, rubbing her temples to block out the faint ringing sound.

But what she saw when she opened her eyes only confused her further.

"Uhh..."

She was currently in what she could only assume was Emerald Forest... or Fall Forest... she couldn't really tell because everything was in greyscale. Looking around and hearing only a faint breeze rustling the trees around her as she stood up in a small meadow within the clearing, Yang had barely registered the scenery as vaguely familiar when in the blink of an eye she was back in front of Zannah.

"Are you alright?" the woman asked with surprisingly genuine concern, taking another step closer to the brawler who took two steps back.

"Why would _you_ care?" a fairly irked Yang quipped sharply, "You said you don't even know me."

"Not _quite_," the woman replied enigmatically, "But I am here to give you a warning."

The brawler narrowed her eyes at the woman, trying to analyze everything she could about her like Davin likely would've. Firstly, her accent was distinct. Much like Cipher's, it was more refined and proper, indicative of her origin in an island off of Atlas named Great Briton. But other than that, there wasn't really anything else to go off of... other than the jet-black hair and red eyes that she had seen previously. On herself.

"Before you give me your ominous warning," the blonde began slowly, "Are you _sure_ I don't know you? Because you do seem kinda familiar..."

"Do I?" the woman countered airily, "Because we are only in your dream, after all."

Yang deadpanned at the woman, crossing her arms in front of herself, "Yeah, I'm calling BS on that. I think I've had enough experience with this metaphysical dream stuff to know when I'm _in_ one. Courtesy of my boyfriend, his name was Da-_ohhhhh boy_..."

Falling back once again as her current world spun out of existence like a maelstrom, Yang landed a second time in the black and white clearing in the nondescript forest. Rubbing her head, she brushed her hair out of her face and slowly stood up with a grunt as she began to take in her surroundings.

"_Man_, this is getting real trippy right about now..."

But in taking another look around the clearing, she realized she wasn't in as nondescript a scene as she'd previously assumed... she'd know those ruined columns jutting out of the ground anywhere.

"Landfall... but why?"

_Whoosh..._

And with what felt like a particularly strong breeze, she was pushed back in front of the strange woman who now seemed a little more peeved than before.

"Interesting," she began flatly, now looking over the surprised brawler with narrowed eyes, "I may be underestimating you."

"Once again, _why_ do you care?" Yang quipped in reply, throwing up her arms in frustration as the feeling of being exposed to this woman's gaze was beginning to put her on edge.

"Because _you_, Yang Xiao Long, are the offspring to a particularly powerful line of humans, and a dangerous one at that. You see, you are by no means _Unbalanced_, but your aura has an unnatural affinity for Dark Energy which gives your natural aura impressive amounts of raw strength... as I'm sure you know by your semblance already..."

_That_, of course, caught the brawler by surprise... but not nearly as much as the dark grin she received from the woman as she continued.

"And if that weren't enough, it is now apparent that you've been bonded with the Dark One of the Unbalanced... some of his essence yet resides within you..."

Yang paled as her previous fear had come true... it really _was_ as if that woman could look right through her. But that only left her with as many questions as answers... so there was some of Davin's aura still in her, there was something weird going on with her, but why now?

"And what's so important about _me?_" Yang added with a sharp glare, still distrustful of her.

The woman merely laughed once more, the light-hearted sound striking the brawler as vaguely familiar when the woman continued, "You never really did take easily to strangers, hah. That is to be expected. In bonding your auras when you unlocked the aura of the Unbalanced, your secondary semblance was unlocked in the process with its own _unique_ abilities... and I believe it has finally manifested..."

She took yet another step closer to Yang, bending down slightly with her hands behind her back to look into the brawler's eyes, "Are you sure you do not wish to get at least a _little_ angry right now?~"

Yang narrowed her eyes at the swordswoman, the two a mere few feet apart as Yang focused her breathing and did her utmost to remain calm as Vin had taught her. Seeing no change in the girl nor signs that she was about to lash out, Zannah straightened up and took a step back with a small smile.

"Very well then, it was worth attempting. After all, your manifestation in the tournament arena is what alerted us to your identity in the first place."

"Us?" Yang echoed questioningly, the plural form of that word clearly denoting a bad omen.

"Oh yes, _us_," Zannah repeated before letting out a sigh, "To put it simply, consider yourself fortunate that it was _I_ who contacted you first before the others; upon sensing even a shard of the aura from the Dark One of the Unbalanced within you, they would've had you killed immediately. You see, to answer your previous question - you _are_ important, yet only of secondary priority to the identity and location of the Dark One of the Unbalanced."

The brawler scoffed loudly at the remark, actually managing to break the ever-present smile of the woman in front of her, "Hah! Have fun with _that_; sorry to tell you lady, but _he's_-"

"-the One who has been interfering with our conversation," Zannah finished bluntly which caused the brawler to falter at her words, "And if He is powerful enough to disrupt the likes of _my_ semblance through your connection, then the bond between you both must be truly remarkable."

Yang blinked, the blood quickly rushing to her face as a million emotions began wearing down at her, "But-"

"There is no longer anything left to discuss," Zannah stated flatly, raising a hand to stop Yang as she put on her Grimm mask and paused on her first step to turn away, "He wishes to show you something; if the power He is currently expending was enough to interfere with our connection _twice_, then it may be best you pay heed to what he has to say."

The blonde could only listen with a slackened jaw as Zannah concluded, "But know _this_: there is darkness descending upon your world the likes of which have been long forgotten and the strength of which you stand no chance at defending. _This_ is my warning. Act quickly, for I will not be able to delay the inevitable much longer... You must find the Dark One, for only your forces can possibly withstand _ours. _Find him, and follow your instincts. We shall meet again soon..."

Walking away from her, Yang watched as the woman along with everything surrounding her began swirling to a point once more, the motion of the entire world spinning causing the brawler to fall back with a thud... back at the ruins.

Regaining her senses, Yang rubbed her eyes and looked around the greyscale forest and ruins as she tried to process what the swordswoman had said.

"V-Vin?" she finally began hesitantly despite the overwhelming feeling of solitude in the ruins she was currently walking through, "_Vin!_ Can you hear me!"

Rubbing her arms as a light breeze sent goosebumps up her limbs, Yang continued towards the center of the column-filled patio as she glanced around for any signs of life.

"Vin! ...Are you really the one doing this?"

She sighed as she kept walking, wondering how that lady had seemed to know so much about her... and why she looked so familiar. But every time her mind seemed on the cusp of recognition, it felt as if all memory were yanked from her leaving her at square one.

'I wonder if it's how Vin felt all this time not being able to figure out who he was,' Yang mused internally before nearly tripping on some stones that were sticking up from the patio.

"Ack! _Stupid roc_\- huh?" Yang began angrily, stopping abruptly when she turned back to see only grass.

And looking back up, she exhaled sharply in exasperation as the the scene before her now lay bare, the Forest gone and the meadow of grey grass going on as far as the eye could see except for the single stone standing a few feet from her.

Walking up to it, she immediately recognized it as the stone she had visited months before. The writing read as the day it was the first and only time she'd seen it, the memory of which already threatening to bring tears to her eyes.

**Davin Rosfield**

**Friend | Leader | Hero**

**Deceased**

She sighed, closing her eyes as her breath hitched and taking out Davin's medallion from her side pouch to hold against her heart. Feeling her heartbeat against the metal, she recalled to mind her last words at the gravestone...

"One more miracle, Vin, for me," she began as she raised her hand to place on the epitaph, "Don't be... huh?"

Her watery eyes shot open as her hand landed on something... _warm_, pulsing against her skin where it made contact.

"This... this is..."

The light now stretching out from the invisible object between her hand and the stone being the only thing in the dreamscape in color, wisps of orchid energy began flowing slowly around the brawler, surrounding her in a globe of a beautiful display of light. The dancing lights before her brought a smile to her features the more it reminded her of Vin's presence, and without resistance she let her face be cradled by a draft of energy that came close to her... the warmth and sensation feeling incredibly like that of a hand against her cheek.

She closed her eyes, reveling in the feeling for a moment longer before her expression turned to that of pained sorrow, a single tear falling before she opened her eyes to the waiting wisps of energy before her.

"I can't... can't keep fooling myself like this," Yang whispered, a choked whimper escaping her lips as she held back the urge to sob, "It isn't _fair_ for all this to be happening the way it is..."

Turning up to the stone as the soft-lit energy continued flowing around her, her gaze hardened on the writing as she spoke up louder this time, "It's not fair! If you're out there... if you can even _hear_ me... then come back."

Her fists clenched at her sides as her eyes now went red upon rereading the motionless stone and seeing no change around her.

"_JUST COME BACK, _ya hear!?" she shouted despairingly, fire briefly bursting out of her form before settling back down, "Or... or else it's like this is just all in my head..."

Glancing around herself, it seemed the flowing energy around her and the stone had slowed until nearly stopping, a subtle show of empathy perhaps... but other than that, the stagnant silence and the undisturbed light breeze amid the dreamscape signaled no further change had taken place.

Wiping her nose gruffly on her combat glove with a short sniffle, the brawler simply shook her head and walked out of the sphere of energy like walking through a silk curtain, leaving the dreamscape behind her to fade to black.

"Thought so."

* * *

Nighttime in Fall Forest.

A single figure sits cross-legged on a rocky outcropping jutting out of the side of a cliff, the overlook providing a wide vista to the shattered moon above and the dim red forests below.

The maskless figure sighs in relaxation, taking in the aroma of a landscape trapped in eternal autumn before receiving a voice message on her comm device.

'_Were you successful in making contact?_' the voice comes through the line authoritatively, nothing less than the best news expected.

"Of course, Commander," the figure in red replies, "And her identity has been confirmed. Xiao Long lives..."

'_This is quite the discovery indeed_,' the voice continues slowly, '_We were assured that the Xiao Long line had been eradicated - the child pronounced dead upon birth_.'

The figure manages to fight down the beginnings of a scowl as she replies, "Then it seems we were provided faulty intel. I apologize for my unsatisfactory performance."

'_No need. We should target the father to make sure there can be no future procreation of offspring through that family line_.'

The figure stiffens up ever so slightly at the Commander's words, but relaxes enough to shake her head with an easy smirk, "Now now. With all due respect, doing so would prove ineffective."

The voice replies with a slight tinge of curiosity, '_And why is that, Zannah?_'

"Because as you know," she continues with a satisfied smile, "Xiao Long is merely the name attributed to the current Dark Berserker through the father. The attributes of the line itself, however, is and always has been passed down through the _mother_."

'_Hmm_,' the voice hums, a second hum slowly turning into a chuckle that visibly unsettles the Red General, '_Well then, that little fact does serve us quite well, doesn't it? I trust you've foreseen how to deal with the Dark Berserker effectively?_'

"Yes, Commander," she responds with only a slight moment's hesitation, "The only way to overpower her without compromising our presence will be with endless numbers. The Turned armies should suit the function well. I'll be sure to have the... _team_... soon to be working under myself see to it that it is set up correctly."

'_Excelent, Zannah,_' the voice sighs with evident dark satisfaction, '_You prove your invaluable worth yet again... Only one more question. Of her relationship with the Dark One of the Unbalanced... has she been augmented by his aura in any way?_'

The expression on Zannah's face runs through dozens of unreadable emotions before she replies.

"No."

'..._Yet she will still be able to draw him out of his current location?_' the Commander questions shrewdly, '_Not even you have been able to sense his whereabouts. How can you be so sure she of all people could?_'

"Aside from her abilities," Zannah remarks flatly before regaining her usual tone, "I've already seen it. Stronger now than ever before... but we will need more time."

'_Time is a luxury we are growing pained to afford,_' the voice retorts sharply, '_You mean to say that we must risk the presence of our armies and the entire harvest of this planet in order to lure out the One we need!?_'

"_Yes_, my Commander," the Red General replies resolutely, "As I said. I've already seen it. He _will_ arrive."

A stagnant pause follows, the night and forest itself seemingly keeping still for a response before the Commander finally lets out a long sigh.

'_Very well. What's a few more weeks in wait compared to eons of unlimited power? As soon as his identity is made known, we will strike... and the kingdoms of this forsaken planet will finally fall to my forces as they should've centuries ago._'

And with that, the line goes dead as the Red General leans back on the outcropping, easing into another relaxing breath.

"A few more weeks in wait..." Zannah slowly echoes as she reaches down into her girdle-belt to pull out an aged, tattered photograph of a blond and green-eyed man holding a newborn in a hospital room, a breeze blowing through her raven-colored hair as she runs a thumb over the photo with a warm smile.

"What's a few more weeks in wait... compared to the eighteen years she's spent looking for _me?_"

* * *

**A/N: Aaand done! Have you ever had one of those dreams where you're constantly shifting between two scenes? I have. Kinda what inspired this chapter, I hope it isn't too confusing! With everything going on, I'm just glad to have gotten this chapter out and I hope you like it too :) General Zannah... yeah, I won't get into details, but her character always reminds me of Nyssa from The Arrow. Which is why she has the slight accent :D _Gorgeous_ woman imo**

**But I digress.**

**Finally got the prologue done - which _yes_, it's shorter, cuz it's a prologue - but I have now finally set the stage for everything to begin coming together! I'm so glad to have gotten input from everyone and from those who submitted their OCs, and it's shaping up to be what I hope is the best volume yet! And don't worry, I was trying to jump-start my writing muscles and came up with two fics - _Frequency_ and _The Gamer Girl_ \- that has become quite popular, but that doesn't mean I won't be giving _Chronicle_ some love too! But in the meantime, feel free to check them out :)**

**Anyway, _fave, follow and review_ to help continue supporting my first fanfic and I'll be coming back soon with the first chapter of Volume 3! **

**Happy Reading!**


	70. Vol 3-1: Echoes

**_Echoes  
_**_-I-_

* * *

_Clink... clink tink... Clink..._

"Yang."

_Clink clink... tink..._

"Yang..."

The blonde brawler sighed, blowing a lock of her golden hair up as she absent-mindedly played with her food on her plate, her cat-eared partner vying for her attention with concern as Yang stared at the still filled plate.

"Yang, I'm going to get right to the point," Blake continued in earnest, Ruby and Weiss still getting their breakfast, "You look _terrible_."

"Uh huh," she mumbled flatly in reply, not lifting her gaze as she continued poking at her food.

The faunus-girl shook her head, a worried frown on her features as she pushed on, "Still not getting any sleep?"

"Uh huh."

_Clink... tink tink..._

Not entirely used to being the one that gets brushed off, the ravenette fought back a small surge of frustration as she decided to dig deeper despite knowing full well it's possible consequences, "Is it the dreams again?"

Yang instantly slammed her fork on the table, startling her partner a bit before lifting her groggy gaze up to her.

"Ya know what? How 'bout we postpone this conversation and come back to it in... I dunno... a couple months? Yeah, good plan."

Blake narrowed her eyes at her partner, her resolve unwavering, "Yang. You told me once that we could always find the answers we were looking for, but what would it be good for if we destroyed ourselves in the process?"

The brawler leaned back in her seat, averting her gaze from her partner as she scoffed at her own words being used against her, "Blake, I told you about what was going on in my head because I needed someone to _tell_. Because dreaming the same thing over and over for _weeks_ has a way of driving you a little crazy if you keep it all cooped up inside. It was _not_ meant for us to have a heart-to-heart about it."

"But what do you think you're doing by avoiding the subject like this _anyways?_" Blake whispered harshly, "You're self-imploding, and you're _definitely_ not gonna get any answers that way."

Shaking her head, Yang turned to Blake and leaned forward, raising her hands in defeated exasperation as she continued emphatically, "What answers are there to _find?_ Vin's _gone_. I think we established that months ago when it happened! Jaune helped me try to make sense out of these dreams already and we've gotten nowhere with it. _Obviously_... it's my head doing a serious number on me."

"You _don't_ know that for sure," Blake shot back, an idea suddenly dawning on her as her face softened with the possibility, "Have you... tried going back?"

Yang's face darkened, the beginnings of a scowl forming as she leaned a little more forward until the girls were nearly face to face, "It crossed our minds. But I am _not_. Going. _Back_ there... one heartbreak is enough for me, thank you very much."

"Umm... are we interrupting something?" Ruby asked meekly, interrupting her teammates as she and Weiss approached the table.

Yang huffed at Blake before turning to her sister with a tired smile, "Nothin' to worry about, Rubes. I was just leaving."

"But you haven't even touched your food," Weiss observed matter-of-factly, to which Yang deadpanned as she stood up and dumped the food into a nearby trash bin.

"I'm _stuffed_."

Ruby and a slightly irked Weiss took their seats beside Blake as the three watched the fourth member of their team exit the cafeteria, Ruby being the first to break the awkward silence.

"I'm guessing... she had another bad night?"

"What gave it away?" Blake hedged through slightly gritted teeth, to which the crimsonette merely glanced pointedly at Blake's clenched fists on the table.

The catgirl sighed, relaxing as she placed her utensil on the table and covering her face with her hands with a groan as she too had now lost her appetite, "I don't _know_, guys... if we can't get her either to face this or to put it behind her, we may not even _have_ a full team by the first day of classes."

"That's only in like, a few days, right?" Weiss asked before calmly eating a forkful of breakfast.

"Yeah," Ruby replied dejectedly, "Man, we gotta figure something out... Even _she_ can't keep on like this for much longer. We'll just have to wait until she cools off first."

Blake and Weiss idly nodded at either side of the red leader before the three set into finishing their breakfast.

* * *

Yang sat a fair distance from the campus, dangling her legs off the side of the cliff by the carrier pads where the children had been brought to the academy nearly a year before. Leaning back, she took a deep breath, savoring the cool breeze in an attempt to relax when she was suddenly aware of a presence behind her.

"If you're here for a lecture, I need not remind you that were next to a cliff and I'm much stronger than you. No one would even know what happened."

A slight pause followed before the response, "Big talk coming from a girl who can barely keep her eyes open."

Surprised by the voice that was much different from the one she expected, Yang quickly turned to see the heiress standing a couple feet behind her, the lazy breeze pushing her ponytail back and ruffling her coat as she flashed the brawler a small smile.

"I... think of all the people I figured would come here, you were the _least_ I expected, Weiss."

The snowy-haired girl broke eye-contact to nod slowly in agreement, "I'd agree. But when it comes to a teammate making monstrously terrible decisions in their personal upkeeping, I'm not one to dilly-daddle."

Yang rolled her eyes before turning back to look over the cliff, "I see you've brought your pep-talking A-game with you as well..."

Not really expecting much more from the easily-miffed heiress, Yang was somewhat startled when Weiss appeared at her side, daintily brushing off her combat skirt before taking a seat next to her and dangling her legs off the side of the cliff as well.

"This is an interesting spot," Weiss began as the two girls looked over the vista of the Valean city that their overlook offered, "Did you come here to reflect or regret?"

Yang snorted, a derisive smirk on her lips as she sighed and replied more out of necessity than anything else, "I've always liked these kinds of overlooks. Don't know why. The taller it is and the bigger view it offers, the more I like it."

"You haven't answered my question," the heiress replied with a raised brow.

Yang settled in again, leaning back on her arms before speaking up, "Yeah, if you think _really_ hard, you'll notice I've been doing that a lot lately with people."

Weiss snickered at the brawler's evident deflection, "Avoiding the subject with sarcasm. I'd be hard-pressed to say I'm not familiar with the concept."

"Are you now..." Yang drawled as she looked upwards to nothing in particular, clearly uninterested in whatever answer she'd receive to her comment.

"Yes. Considering that I've lost loved ones as well... sometimes it's not a terribly big deal. But other times... it changes you."

Yang wasn't about to open up so easily to what could arguably be described as her least favorite teammate, but it did add some merit to her eyes that Weiss would be the one trying to get to her after the past few weeks. Sure, they all had asked if everything was alright - her team, Jaune's team, even team VNDS and the Dorme guys whenever they'd drop by - but she had done her best to hide the worst of it.

Honestly, this whole thing had been eating away at her, tearing up on the inside what it couldn't devour of the brawler. And she was finally getting sick of it. If someone dies, doesn't it mean they're _dead? _It's a pretty straight-forward concept, isn't it? And after weeks of hearing the same thing over and over from Jaune and Blake without any solid proof, the idea of these 'dreams' actually meaning something was beginning to tick her off. An emotion, of course, that bled into her next reply to the heiress.

"_Wooow_... something that could actually _change_ the frigid heart of an Ice Princess. Must be brutal."

Weiss shook her head, having expected such a response and repressing her immediate lashing reflexes at the brawler, "Not exactly. Losing my mother... didn't change me as much as it did my _father_."

It could've been the fact that Weiss had breached the topic of her mother with Yang for the first time, or the repulsed tone she adopted as she mentioned her father; but either way, Yang was now paying attention.

"I'm... sorry to hear that."

"Don't be. It was a long time ago," the heiress continued coolly, "My mother was very sickly - weak immune system - and of all things, she succumbed to a _cold_, ironically. After that, my father retreated into himself, shutting everyone out and focusing solely on his company."

"So... you're saying I'll become a shut-in if I keep at this or something?" Yang asked with a brow raised.

"No," Weiss replied, her voice becoming sharper as she explained, "No. Something _much_ worse. My father... he became angry. _Ruthless_. All the years I spent trying to excuse how he treated the defenseless and took advantage of the weak as corporate business policy, it was only a matter of time before my sister and I realized that we'd lost him. He was no longer the man we knew... and it affected us, too."

"Weiss," the brawler replied, her voice now softer as she turned to face the upset heiress with a softer tone, "I'm really sorry about what you went through... But I'm not your father."

"You _sure_ about that?" she quipped hotly at the blonde, pointing back at the main campus, "Because you have people in there who _care_ about you, who _worry_ about you, and want to help you get through this. But if you shut everyone else out, there's _nothing_ to keep you from becoming someone like him... or _worse_."

Yang sighed, the two girls staring at each other for a tense moment before Yang slowly shook her head and turned to look over the city, "Well that's _my_ choice to make. I won't be hurting anyone."

At that, the heiress growled as her face went a shade red darker, "_Yes. You. Will! _You think my sister and I got off scott-free from my father's actions!? The things he put us through were heartless, unspeakable trials for children that have scarred us both for life!"

Yang was about to turn back to shoot a reply, but when she turned to face her teammate, she saw the scar... the look of despair beneath the anger in her eyes, and stopped herself short.

"Yang Xiao Long, you _cannot_ continue like this," Weiss commanded, her regal Schnee tone coming to the fore, "For the sake of those who love you and for your own sake as well!"

The brawler looked down and sighed, "Weiss..."

"No," the rapier-wielder repeated with a softer tone now, placing her hand on Yang's forearm, "You _cannot_ continue like this. Yang, you're strong... not because of your brawn, but because of your heart. Ruby may lead this team, but you hold it together, being the first to call things out when they're wrong and the first to celebrate when they're right. We wouldn't be able to function without the Yang we know..."

The heiress exhaled, pausing for a moment before adding meekly, "...even me. You're a good person with a good heart, Yang. Let us help you. If you focus your strength on doing right, your power on doing good... we can all help you get through this. It's a lesson I had to learn as well."

She glanced over to Yang and was taken aback when she saw tears falling, most of her face obscured by her mane of golden hair as she dismally answered.

"That 'good' you talk about is gone," she began between tear-choked breaths, "That part of me died with Vin..."

Weiss blinked at the downtrodden young woman, her own heart feeling a pang of pain that she thought she had become desensitized to long ago when she was struck by an idea.

"Mm, no," she began calmly, a small smile gracing her lips, "I beg to differ. You see... Davin may not be with us anymore, but your determination remains. Otherwise, you wouldn't have your mind so set on bearing this pain on your own."

Sniffling, Yang trend her head slightly towards her teammate, her gaze still fixed downward as the heiress continued, "And determination, it comes from the _heart_, Yang. And you have it - your power, your ability to do _good_ for those around you - it can still drive you... if you let it."

A long moment of silence set in, Yang finally breaking it with a hitched chuckle as she looked back up at Weiss with the faintest of smiles, "Vin... heh, he used to tell me that a lot..."

"Then do it for _him_," Weiss pressed on, her smile growing a little wider, "Be the person he saw in you, live the way he would've wanted you to. _That_, Xiao Long, will be the best way to preserve his memory _and_ to continue striving for your own goal of becoming a Huntress."

With a passive sigh, Yang took another moment to contemplate the heiress' unexpectedly helpful words before faintly nodding, "That'd only be fair, wouldn't it. I owe it to him to try every possibility, either to figure things out or to get some real closure on all this... and then move on."

"Right," Weiss agreed warmly, "So at this point, whatever Belladonna suggested, I say you should try it if it'll dispel any remaining doubts about Davin."

A frown beginning to grow on her, Yang scratched the back of her head as she began, "Well that's the thing. You see, after my little aura incident in the tournament, I started having these weird dreams about Davin... and after a couple of them, they all started focusing on the same thing..."

"What?"

"...his grave."

Weiss' posture stiffened a bit at the mention, "His _grave?_"

The brawler nodded, a worried expression on her face as she continued, "I... still don't think I'm completely ready to revisit that place after the fighting at Landfall. But you and Blake do have a point... I'll just keep ripping myself apart inside unless I make sure of what's what over there."

The heiress hummed pensively, trying to figure the most efficient way to go about this, "Well then, it's always better not to rush into something unprepared. How about for the next few days, you rest as much as you can - knowing that you're soon to settle this once and for all - and we go visit his grave with you after the first-years' initiation. All of us."

Yang now grinned for what felt like the first time in ages at the idea, smacking the unsuspecting heiress in the back as she spoke up back in her usual tone, "Sounds like a plan, Ice Princess! Thanks for the talk, I see why the girls must've sent you. They'll definitely get a kick out of this!"

At that, Weiss froze, her every fiber bristling as she held the brawler back from standing up with a straight gaze, "They never sent me... I came on my own accord. Which is why I must tell you not to breathe a word about this to _anyone_."

"Whaaa-" Yang replied incredulously, raising her arms in a show of disappointment, "I don't know what's weirder: you having come to help me out without anyone telling you to, or you keeping me from telling anyone about it!"

"_Hey_, I have a rep to protect!" the heiress exclaimed as both students now stood up, "Even if it's as one as ludicrous as the one you've propagated with the _Ice_ references!"

"Yeah... that stuff really caught on with the students, didn't it," the blonde mused pensively, a finger to her chin in thought.

"Which is why if you damage said reputation in any way by telling anyone about this - which they'll likely take as a sign that I've gone soft and will bring about a _hundred_ pre-Arkos Jaune-a-likes to my doorstep," the heiress shot back as she took a step closer to the brawler, "Then I'll show every student in this academy the _proper_ definition of 'Freezerburn' when thinking about you and I!"

Blinking at the heiress' threat with momentary surprise, Yang merely began to grin from ear to ear before pulling in the snowy-haired girl into a tight hug, nearly smothering the shocked girl in the brawler's endowments.

"D'awww, but Weiss... you _are_ going soft on us!~"

"Ack! Gah! Mmph!" the rapier-wielder muttered as she tried to struggle free from Yang's vice-like grip, "U-_Unhand_ me, you buxom oaf!"

Giggling at the protests, Yang simply kept her yelling teammate in the headlock as she happily made her way back towards campus for everyone to see. Of course, never one to miss such an opportunity, Viktor saw the whole thing from his dorm room and made sure to record what he could for his upcoming Freezerburn Omake chapter in his popular fanfiction about the team.

* * *

And so the next few days went by relatively event-free as their vacation came to a close. The preparations for this year's initiation made, teams JNPR, RWBY and VNDS met in the former's dorm for food and karaoke before the big day.

"That... was definitely fun," Blake remarked as her team exited the dorm, turning back to give Sun a quick surprise hug before rejoining her teammates.

"No kidding," Ruby added with a yawn, "Weiss won the sing-off again though... _obviously_."

The heiress flashed her a winning smile as she quipped, "Don't be a sore loser. I'm sure you'll have a chance someday."

"Pfft, no she won't~"

"Yang!"

As the brawler dodged an attempted high-speed tackle from the indignant crimsonette, Blake rolled her eyes with a smirk and unlocked their dorm door before letting her team in. Weiss lightly tugged at Ruby's hood as the girl continued trying to tackle her sister - who sidestepped at every advance, knowing her little sister well - before speaking up.

"C'mon, time for some shut-eye. We have a busy day tomorrow with all the new first-years flooding in."

"You mean a busy day spying on the new talent to gauge the competition," Blake quipped smugly as she slipped into her yukata.

"Y-You can't prove that!"

"And we got our buddies from Dorme coming in for initiation," Yang commented idly, holding Ruby by the head at arm's length as the crimsonette uselessly tried to get at her.

But at hearing the info about Dorme, Ruby stopped and put a finger to her chin pensively, "Wait, so... that means Seul and everyone is here tomorrow?"

"That's right, Rubes," Yang quipped, a grin growing on her features, "So you're gonna need your beauty sleep to look your best for your crush~"

"S-Shut up! We haven't seen them in forever, that's all!" Ruby yelled with flushed cheeks, pausing for a moment as she looked at her other smirking teammates before continuing meekly, climbing up to her bunk, "But... it's probably a good idea to get plenty of rest... cuz, you know, initiation and stuff."

"Uh huh, whatever you say, boss lady~" Yang replied with a wink before climbing up to her own bunk as well.

"She does know that we don't take part in initiation, right?" Blake remarked sideways at the amused heiress as the snowy-haired girl shook her head.

"At this point, probably not. Girl has a strange taste in boys..."

Blake chuckled as she and the heiress got into their own beds, "Weiss, I'm sure it's not like that... Ruby deserves the benefit of the doubt."

But as the next day came and went, the initiates having already arrived to Beacon that morning, the WBY in team RWBY had to admit that the crimsonette had become... antsy. Finding Jaune and Pyrrha strolling down the hall hand in hand, the poor Arc had the wind knocked out of him when he was suddenly tackled by the concerned red leader.

"Jaune!" Ruby squeaked, grabbing the knight by the collar as Pyrrha stood by and watched the scene develop with some amusement, "Have you heard anything from Dorme? Did everyone make it here okay?"

"Y-Yeah! Yeah, Ruby," he replied quickly as he carefully pried the girl off of him, "It's just that Nora kinda had this intricate plan ready to get them as they came off the airship-"

"It seems she wanted to have her and Ren give them the head-start with training that we never received before _our_ initiation," Pyrrha added from the side with a benevolent smile.

This, of course, caused the poor girl's features to drop, her jaw slack in desolation as she blinked at the Arkos couple.

"Whaaa-?"

_~Meanwhile~_

Nora ran through the Emerald Forest in her short shorts and Boop shirt with four panting teens trying to keep up.

Readjusting her fake Mike Ditka mustache as she cradled a football in her other hand, she yelled back at the poor trainees with a wide grin, "C'mon, pipsqueaks! We get through the next twelve miles on the double or no protein pancakes for you from Chef Ren!"

Earning a collective groan from the future initiates, a sweaty May - wearing a light blue tracksuit she wore as a hand-me-down from Rowenna - turned to a panting Seul who was currently donning black basketball shorts and a matching t-shirt.

"I'm not sure... I can take another... twelve _steps!._.. let alone, twelve miles!" she cried out, her face flushed in an adorable shade of pink.

"You know what _I_ can't take?" the boy huffed as they all leapt over a long string of logs which Nora had placed as 'hurdles', turning back to face a certain member of their group, "_Cheaters_ shirking through training!"

Cipher chuckled as she hovered behind his two companions in the Iron Cipher at their speed, not even moving as the suit carried him along, "_Oh stop your whinging, ya pom. Yer just mad that ya didn't think of this workaround yourself!_"

"That's right!" Nora called back gleefully, having apparently noticed the blatant shortcut the hacker had taken as she continued jogging along without breaking a sweat, "Quick thinking deserves to be rewarded! So listen to Stark and stop whining, Rudy!"

"For the last time, my name is _not_ Rudy!" Seul hissed as Cipher shrugged beside him.

"_Stark is acceptable. I'll take that. Mind taking the mantle of Jarvis, luv?_"

'_As long as it doesn't involve me being assaulted by Ultron, Cy,_' Gabriel replied lightly from the comm device in his helmet, '_And has anyone checked on Terra? Her vitals seem awfully stable for the punishment that Valkyrie girl is putting on you guys.._.'

Turning back again, Seul nearly tripped as he noticed Terra gliding along the ground over a boulder that was carving its way through the floor like a boat through the ocean, "You _too?_"

"What," the Atlesian began in her tank top and yoga pants with an innocent shrug, her blonde hair tied back in a neat ponytail as she kept up with the group without much effort, "I ran the first twelve miles."

"You guys are terrible."

"Remember, Rudy - happy mind, happy body!"

"_Noraaa_..."

"Ru-dy! Ru-dy! Ru-dy!..."

"_grrrrr_..."

_~Back in Beacon~_

"Yeahhh," Jaune mused in contemplation, "And for some reason, Nora took to calling Seul _Rudy_, not sure why..."

"Rudy?" the crimsonette echoed in question, to which the Spartan happily replied.

"Yes, Rudy is the name of a young athlete who made his way into collegiate football despite his disadvantages... one of which being his height."

"Hehe, yeah, Seul was always a little shorter than most," Jaune replied with a grin at his girlfriend, but Ruby only blinked at the thought of the boy who was still an inch or two taller than her.

"He's not short, he's perfect!" Ruby exclaimed, earning a surprised glare from the couple that had her blushing as red as her cloak, "Um, uh... that, came out wrong..."

"Uh-huh," the knight drawled with a knowing wink, "Well I'm sure they'll be back later, though with them having dealt with Nora all day and being put in that atrium to sleep all together, I'm not sure we'll be able to see them until tomorrow."

Ruby sweatdropped at the news, Pyrrha and Jaune holding hands as they began to turn to walk away.

"Well you might run into him before then," Jaune replied with a hidden teasing tone in his voice, "But that'll be if he hits the showers. So he might be... I dunno, what's the word, Pyr?"

"Indecent?" she supplied with an amused smirk.

"Ah yes, _indecent_. Anyways, later Ruby!"

The chuckling couple left the crimsonette in the hallway, still as a stone before her blush returned with a vengeance and she pulled down her hood to squeal into her cloak.

* * *

"Alright, big day tomorrow," Yang announced later that night, team RWBY lounging about the dorm as the brawler walked over and tussled her little sister's hair at the desk, "Don't worry, Rubes, you'll see him soon!"

"Hmpf, on a _screen_..."

Blame shook her head behind her book, a small smirk gracing her features as she looked at the sisters over the pages. However, as Weiss slipped under her sheets and Yang made her way to her bunk, Blake discreetly tapped Yang on the leg as she started climbing up.

"What's up, Blakey?" the brawler whispered as she poked her head down from the bottom of her bunk mid-climb.

Blake cracked a small smile as she asked, "Everything okay? I heard about your decision in regards to Landfall."

Yang shrugged a bit, an unreadable expression as she answered, "Yeah... I think it'll turn out okay. It helps that you guys are coming at least."

"Well, just remember what Vin always used to say," the ravenette mentioned as she put her book aside and began to slide under her covers, "Everything happens for a reason."

The brawler cracked a small smile as she nodded, getting up into her bunk and getting comfortable before she finally fell asleep.

Of course, it only felt like a minute before her eyes opened again...

...in the greyscale landscape of Landfall Ruins.

Yang looked down at her colorless hands, flexing them and feeling the nature of the dreamscape she was currently inhabiting before walking across the grey-grassed meadow. She sighed as the gravestone finally came into view, her hands on her waist as she raised a brow at the memorial.

"Cue the lights..."

And obeying her commands, the familiar orchid energy began seeping out of the stone, casting its dim glow over everything around the stone and brawler as she had grown accustomed to over weeks of the same dream over and over.

"Aaand, I guess I get to chill for a little while."

Sitting down, Yang began checking her weapons, a ritual he had practically created during the time she had spent at the grave when something unexpected happened.

_Yang_...

"Hmm, that's different," the blonde commented, leaning back on her arms as the quiet whisper finished echoing around her vicinity, "Anyone there?"

Nothing happened, the light breeze rustling the leaves and branches of the trees outside of the glowing orb of energy as Yang went back to checking her nails.

"Whoever you are, you should really know that very little surprises me here, even after weeks of coming to this place every night. Not even sure why you're doing this... if you're not just in my head or something."

_I couldn't help noticing your bright personality and sunny sense of humor..._

Yang raised a brow at the out of place whisper, suddenly realizing that it was coming from the orchid energy itself, "Oh... I get it..."

"So let me guess," she replied, finishing the whisper's words, "It kinda pairs off with my sense of fun and... occasional snarkiness?"

..._and to top it all off, all of that gets packed into a Fun-size package..._

Yang let out the smallest chuckle... just like the first time she had heard those words. She noticed how sections of the energy slowly flowing around her would light up with every spoken word, and with that she knew what this was.

"More memories, right?" she thought aloud, "I guess this really is my way of coping with his loss..."

_Think of it as a peace offering_, the whisper continued, now an echo around the energy field that was unmistakably Davin's, _For what I did to offend you._

Yang shook her head, a small smile growing on her as she spoke up once more, "I remember now... that was the conversation we had when you gave me the berries so I wouldn't stay mad at you after we met... You were always talking about how strong memories were. I guess you're right. Even though you're gone, it's like we're still connected through them."

But with a short silence following her statement, Yang raised a brow as a static-like sound emanated from the energy, clearing itself up until a different voice was audible.

_Agssfgfaa... and it may be that only your memory may hold the key to unlocking your connection to it. In the mean time, I suggest you protect it with your life, and continue to work on exercising control over your semblance. With certain recent events, I recommend you and your team exercise the utmost caution as I can assure you that your memory will not be lost forever._

"Hey, I know that voice," Yang mentioned, not recalling a third party in any of the previous dream-memories she had experienced before, "Ozpin."

She remembered those words from the night that the three teams had returned to Beacon after she had unlocked Davin's semblance, Ozpin being the one to explain in further detail the nature of the Unbalanced and the one they would come to know as Darovit.

"But... why _this_ memory?" the brawler mumbled to herself as the echo of the memory faded away within the orb.

But switching back to a vague form of Davin's voice, the next replies came in a wave of echoes.

_Well you know I'm kinda blank when it comes to my past..._

_I _don't_ know where I came from. I _don't_ know how I got here. I _don't_ know who I really am... but there's one thing I _do_ know..._

_I won't let even a world of Grimm stop me..._

Another conversation she'd had with Vin... on the airship when they told each other why they had wanted to become Hunters in the first place. But it was broken, fragments of his word being used to say... something else?

"Stop you?" Yang repeated quietly, her heartbeat rising in her chest as memories now started feeling like a conversation, "Stop you from what?"

The next words made her body go cold as they were from the last conversation she had ever had with the young man.

_I don't think there's a place I can be taken in body or soul that'd be too far for me to come back to you anymore..._

_No matter what happens, Yang, I'll be back..._

"No matter how far you go?" Yang now eked out, her eyes slowly tearing up as she had done the first time as well. And sure enough, the echo replied in kind.

_It may take a week, it may take a month, but if you can wait for me... I will find you..._

Yang wiped the first tear as it fell, huddling herself closer to the gravestone with her knees to her chest as she recalled his words, "You big, dumb, dummie... you _promised_."

_I promise..._

"Alright, STOP," Yang now shouted at the fading echo of his voice, her own voice hardening as she stood up and swallowed the knot in her throat, "This is _my_ dream, in _my_ head, and this is getting weird! It, must, _stop! _And after I visit the grave tomorrow, there will be nothing more to torture me with and I'll be able to live with these memories in peace. In _peace_, ya hear!? _Now STOP!_"

And in one swift action, the energy surrounding her stopped, much to her surprise. Yang watched the glowing wisps of orchid pulsing silently, the breeze being the only sound in the dreamscape, until it all began flowing back into the stone. She turned to see the epitaph one more time and blinked at the strange line of orchid light that remained glowing underneath the engraving until it too disappeared.

Letting out a deep breath as she calmed back down, Yang began to smile contentedly as the breeze picked up around her, beginning to pull apart the dreamscape itself.

"Hah... aha! It _worked!_" she exclaimed in disbelief as the entire landscape around her began fading to black, "Weiss was right... facing things at the grave itself really might end this once and for all..."

And letting the black void of restful slumber overtake her, she thought she heard - or didn't hear - a calm voice, a familiar one that she held dear, as the final bit of consciousness left her.

_I'll see you soon._

* * *

"Hah, and to think I had thought that the Headmaster changed up the rules every year to keep his methods from leaking out!" Weiss exclaimed as teams JNPR, VNDS and RWBY - including a well-rested Yang - watched Ozpin lecturing the line of new students by the cliffside through a large monitor that Cipher had set up in RWBY's dorm.

"Look, there's everyone from Dorme, and that Terra girl!" Ruby pointed out at the screen, the students nodding in affirmation.

Velvet pouted pensively at the Atlesian blonde, "I recall Miss Ardavanus fared very well in the tournament, I look forward to seeing her use her abilities against the Grimm."

"I look forward to seeing how the _partnering_ plays out," Jaune added with a smirk, turning to Nora who didn't seem any worse for wear considering the boot camp session she had held yesterday, "You think our guys are up to snuff, Coach Nora?"

The hammer maiden saluted with an eccentric grin, "You bet, Mister Fearless Leader! I've taught them everything there is to know! I say they're shoe-ins for the Super Bowl this year for sure!"

"Once again, this is not football, Nora," Ren corrected with a quiet chuckle on the side.

'_Well I must say it does feel like quite the game,_' a digital feed of Gabriel began as her head popped up on the side of the monitor screen, '_And since helping our people would be considered chreating, I've been reduced to monitoring their vitals and ensuring their safety._'

"I'm sure they'll appreciate you help very much, Gabby," Jaune stated with a grin, "Especially Cipher."

'_Oh I know,_' she replied with a matching grin that would make their relation to each other obvious to anyone who didn't know it already, '_And speaking of which..._'

...

Over at the Beacon cliffside, Cyrus put a hand to the side of his helmet to accept an incoming communication as Ozpin continued his speech.

"Oi, kinda busy right now, luv... This bloke's goin' on about partners and four-year teams and wotnot, can you believe that!?"

'_I know I know,_' the tech-savvy Arc began quickly, ensuring that she was broadcasting to the hacker, her sister, the boy and the earth-bender, '_But in the name of "ensuring your safety", I'd recommend you four head to the enclaves toward the east as most will try to head directly north to the forest temple. You'll likely meet up with each other and have a shorter way to the temple and back._'

The cryptic chuckled as he replied, "Babe, I'm luvin ya more ev'ry day, ya know that?"

'_Teehee, love you too, Cy. Now pay attention - that Goodwitch lady is looking at you!_'

Cipher cleared his throat, ending the communication as Ozpin finished his instructions.

"Remember, you must destroy everything you encounter... or you _will_ die. Any questions?..."

A random student somewhere down the line was seemingly about to psych themself up to raise their hand when all the launchpads went off at once.

_**TWANG!**_

Watching the assorted yelling and screaming as the entire first-year group was flung into Emerald Forest, the Headmaster watched with a satisfied sip of coffee.

"...Good."

Behind him, Glynda finished inputting notes on her tablet and looked up at the flying students with vague amusement before turning to the Headmaster himself, "I see you went ahead and set off the launchpads at once this year."

He shrugged, a casual lilt to his head as he replied, "Well, after last year and Mister Arc's questions to stall for time during initiation, I felt as if the students would reap a more fulfilling experience if they'd enjoy this process all together."

The disciplinarian raised a brow at the broken logic as she continued, "Very well, anything new this year? Relics? Obstacles?"

"Oh yes. You recall the Deathstalker we planted in the cave last year?"

Her eyes widened slightly as she answered, "You don't mean..."

"Yes," Ozpin confirmed with a ghost of a smirk as he took another sip of coffee, "We'll have much more of that. Among other things... in all honesty, I fell most sorry for any student who lands towards the _east_."

As Glynda returned to typing on her tablet, mostly to insure that plentiful medical aid was on hand in case of emergency, Seul made his approach toward the forest canopy.

Silently shooting through the air, his speed was by far the fastest among the students as he held Hansel out in front of himself to pierce through the air with the aid of his semblance, easily maneuvering himself towards the east as he made his descent. Falling through the treetops at speeds close to terminal velocity, he slowed his trajectory to a midair standstill with a flick of his wrist as he opened the umbrella, a huge air blast being unleashed at the braking action that actually managed to fell a few nearby trees with the raw force. And with that, he was on the floor, a soft landing that few others would likely be able to emulate.

Seul looked around the small clearing to find that his companions weren't there, a long sigh escaping his lips as his shoulders sunk in dejection knowing full well what he was about to have to do. Of course, Coach Nora, having thought of everything, _ensured_ that the four future students had every tool at their disposal to locate each other in the event of separation with the highest degree of effectiveness. The boy, on the other hand, had his own opinion on the training, but he decided roll with it as he now saw himself with little other choice.

"Eff my life."

And with that, he sheathed his weapons and cupped his hands around his mouth before proceeding to execute his rehearsed locating signal... of a sloth call.

* * *

**A/N: And Volume 3 gets kicked off with a _TWANG!_ Hehe okay that was a stretch... Anyway, definitely more packed into this chapter as the previous ones were pretty short. All in all, I'm satisfied with it but I hope Yang's mood doesn't seem too incoherent since it spans the course of a week and her mood was up and down in the meantime. But yep, this chapter was named _Echoes_ for a reason :)**

**In any case, thanks so much for your continued support of my first fanfic - man, time has _really_ gone by since I started Chronicle - and don't forget to _Fave, Follow and Review _if you haven't done so already! More will be coming soon as this year's initiation keeps our Dorme people on their toes, and things get really interesting soon as well with our favorite blonde brawler ;) Not to mention thank-you notes! There will _definitely_ be thank-you notes next chapter too hehe :)**

**Anyway, time for bed. It's late, and I apologize for the grammar mistakes there may have been because of it. So, until next time!**

**And Happy Reading!**


	71. Vol 3-2: Initiation

**_Initiation_**

* * *

"Whyyy did I come here again," Seul sighed, his voice a little hoarse from the few minutes he had already spent re-enacting the subtle call of a sloth before recalling a certain crimsonette to mind.

Shaking off the mental image before a faint blush could set in, he decided to cup his hands around his mouth and was about to continue Nora's recommended locating method when he was suddenly interrupted.

"For the love of Monty, _please_ don't do that again."

Immediately turning his head to the source of the voice, he deadpanned at the familiar blonde hair and adorable grin that graced the face of May Arc, "Oh yeah? You seemed to find me easily enough thanks to that. How else would we find each other?"

"_Through the trackers I shot you all with just before we launched, mate!_" Cipher now finished as he emerged through the shrubs behind May in his adamantium suit, "_But it wos loads of fun listenin to ya go on like that! Got a nifty recording outta it, too..._"

Fighting back a twitch in his eye, Seul merely sighed as he glared at Cipher and noticed Terra emerging as well behind the cryptic.

"Well, Cy and Terra found each other practically right after landing, so I guess that makes you and me partners, Seul!" May explained with a wide grin, to which Seul nodded in vague contemplation.

"Then that... was actually much easier than I imagined."

"Well we're not out the woods yet," Terra remarked before pausing to look around her, "_Literally_. We still need to find the relics."

However, the four initiates' attention were called to the sudden buzzing sounds in their pockets from the new scrolls they had received that morning. Pulling them out, Seul was the first to play the recorded audio message on speaker.

'_Congratulations on having found your partners with whom you will be sharing your education during the next four years at this academy..._'

"It's Ozpin," May observed in a whisper as the recording continued.

'_That is, provided that you pass initiation. In light of which, there is one last change being implemented in this year's initiation - the relics you will be recovering are highly fragile and somewhat volatile, and in order to pass, you must return to the Cliffside with your relics intact. One relic per pair. Good luck._'

"_Ack, wot is it with these people an their bloody drama!_" Cipher huffed as he shut the device he had and placed it in a small receptacle by his waist, "_Ah well, can't be arsed about it, I bet it's not all that bad._"

"At least we don't seem to be too far," Terra added, looking at a point through the trees and taking off a glove before crouching down and touching the floor. Closing her eyes in concentration, she continued, "I can sense a structure made of stone a few minutes north of our location, there shouldn't be an issue recovering our relics and coming back this way to the cliffs."

As she stood up, she turned to see May with a raised brow in curiosity and speaking up, "Hooow do you know that?"

"My aura lets me sense movement and foreign materials through the ground, giving me the ability to locate certain buildings and people when necessary."

"Nice."

And with that, the group of four trekked through the forest on high alert for any surrounding threats, finally making their way to an old forest temple that had several pedestals lining the entire perimeter. Approaching the nearest pedestals, Terra and Seul began to examine the objects placed on them.

"It looks like..."

"_Dust_," Seul finished her words, waving Cipher and May over to them, "Crystallized. They're stable enough in this form, but shouldn't be exposed to excessive force or heat... or cold, or reactive energy in general."

But noticing the qualities of every dust crystal on the pedestals, May remarked, "But they're all different colors, which will we choose?"

Seul didn't miss a beat as he grabbed a crystal off a pedestal near him, "Green."

"_Definitely_ green," Terra echoed with a grin as she picked up another crystal that had her favorite color nearby.

_Baboom_... _Boom_...

Turning her head at the sound of distant explosions, the earth-bender spoke up again, "It seems some of our fellow initiates have encountered opposition."

"_Then let's clear out while the baddies are busy instead of chin waggin 'ere,_" Cipher suggested as he powered up the suit and began hovering over the group, "_We'll make our way east an' cut back to the cliffs, it's the way we came - and we didn't see any of those daft muppets of Grimm on our way over!_"

"Sounds good," Seul stated as he stashed the crystal in a secure flap in his pants.

Flying in front of the group with the relics at hand, Cipher led the way back into the forest, the thick canopy quickly smothering most of the sunlight which they had previously had before. Pulling up his internal communicator, the cryptic began, "Luv, I'll need ya to be my eyes and ears while we're here - I may not have one of those barmy auras these blokes got, but I'm gettin a feeling we're bein tailed by somethin rather beastly and I'd hate to bodge a decent hike in the woods, yeah?"

The reply came in quickly, '_Well Cy, now that you mention it, I am getting a reading at your nine o'clock. Be careful._'

Immediately stopping his advance, Cipher stopped in mid-air a few feet in front of the group and let himself drop to the floor as he snapped his head to the left at a sound he heard behind some bushes.

Seul spoke up, having been covering the group from behind, "Cy, what's-"

"_Sh_," the hacker quickly interrupted as he held a hand out to stop the boy, taking another step closer to the darkened bushes off their path, "I thought I heard-"

_WHOOMP_

And in a flash of black, a long scaly hulk of an animal rammed the Iron Cipher right into a clearing at the group's other side, the black form following through as it slithered after the dazed cryptic who landed several feet away.

"_Cipher!_"

Running after their peer and the rushing Grimm, Seul was the first to make out the giant creature that had attacked his friend, his shoulders slumping as the dual-headed King Taijitu hissed its blood-curdling roar at the four.

_NYAAAAA!_

"Snakes... Why'd it have to be _snakes?_"

"Look out!" May shouted, pulling the frozen boy down from a near miss head-strike from the white head of the beast before another rustling was heard in the trees from above.

"Ah-_HAAAAAH!_"

And in a flash of rose gold, a large figure emerged from the trees wielding a large katana, leaping onto the midsection of the Grimm and swiftly running all the way up to its white head while slashing back and forth along its spine. Flipping off the head and landing in front of the group in a crouch, he stood up with a smirk as the King Taijitu recoiled its white half with a pained roar.

Terra looked at the young man, a fairly tall figure with average build, and examined the steampunk style rose gold armor that ran down his legs and arms before glancing back up at the Grimm that seemed to shake off the surprise attack and now ready itself to strike the young man from behind in retaliation.

"Umm, random person?" she began nervously as the white head zeroed in on its target in front of them, "I don't think your attacks really did anything - you _really_ might want to turn around right about now!"

But just as the Grimm uncoiled and shot forward for its killing strike, the young man's smirk only widened as he watched the group with his back to the beast, "He is already dead."

And suddenly stopping merely inches from his back with fangs bared to kill, the entire half of the snake-Grimm began to violently convulse, bubbling black masses emerging from the now evident cuts that the rose-gold katana-wielder had inflicted before the whole white side of the beast exploded.

"Well, _that_ was different," May began with a brow raised in an always-adorable expression before letting the ribbons fall from her forearms, "Now to handle the other head."

But before she could lash out, three bullets suddenly whizzed from the forest into the King Taijitu's black head, completely coating its left half in ice before a final bullet exploded the entire half to pieces in a plume of Dust-powered flame. Already dead before it hit the floor, the half-head of Grimm began disintegrating, the students now watching in surprise as a young woman with light brown eyes and chestnut-colored hair worn in a long ponytail emerged through the black mist.

"That takes care of that," the young man began as he turned to glance at the girl and back to the group with an easy-going smile, "Thought we might drop in on that one for you. The name is Date Ronin."

"_Whoaaa_," Cipher drawled in surprise and an evident impressed tone in his voice, "_That's some nice armor you got there, mate._"

"It goes rather splendidly with his eyes, don't you think?" the young woman now interjected enthusiastically with a wide grin, deftly spinning two dark green revolvers in her hands and into their holsters by her hip.

Date merely shook his head with an amiable scoff, "And that there is Biyu Sacagawea."

"_Sakamoto_."

"Close enough."

"..."

"Hey, we just met!"

Terra squinted at the weapons, cocking a brow as she added, "Interesting weapons. Rather simple, though."

"The Huntress who taught me how to fight always told me to keep it simple," Biyu explained with a smile, "My revolvers for long-range, my daggers for short range. No need to complicate things."

The older blonde looked down at her own unarmed gloves, finding the logic in the girl's words, "Fair enough. Grimm aren't exactly masterminds, either."

May, however, pouted in concentration as she examined the easy-going young man with the jet-black hair that he wore tied up in a samurai hair knot, a few disheveled locks falling in front of his rose gold eyes.

"Well, it does go pretty nicely with them," the young Arc began in reply to Biyu's previous question before shooting the unsuspecting young man a beaming smile, "Hey you, you're cute!"

Snapping his head at her in surprise while the rest either cocked a brow or gaped in surprise, Date simply looked at the group with a light blush before replying, "Uhh... does she do that often? And is the guy with the umbrella alright?"

Finally shaking himself out of his brief moment of shock, Seul replied in a totally composed manner, "I'm fine. I just really don't like snakes. And... May can be very forthright sometimes. You get used to it."

"Then I believe that is something we share in common!" Biyu stated enthusiastically, stepping over to the smiling Arc, "Nice to meet you!"

Admiring the girl's outfit - a pair light brown lace-up work boots along with low-waist cargo short shorts and a forest green tee with a dark brown hiker's vest - May nodded and grinned in return, "Same here!"

Stepping in front of the steampunk fighter, Cipher lifted his mask as he held out a hand with a grin, "And it's nice to make yer aquaintance as well, chap!"

"Same," Date now replied as they shook hands as well before another rustling was suddenly heard at the edge of the clearing.

_NYAAA-NYAAAAA!_

And with growing volume and count, roars and hisses preceded a whole perimeter of Taijitus that now appeared around the clearing, Seul's eyes widening as his body began to tremble before speaking up, "And _I_ really wish I didn't know any of you."

"Uh huh, same," Terra added flatly as she gripped her gloves into fists and struck first, sending a jagged rock formation through the body of a large Taijitu.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Cipher readied the four-barreled machine guns mounted on his forearms and laid waste to each Taijitu head before May turned to the frozen boy, "Seul, you stay here! You don't have to worry about this one - we have help!"

**_..._**

"Hmm," Ozpin mused in thought as he watched the impending battle on his tablet along with Glynda at the edge of the cliffs, "So it seems Mister Sinclair has a slight phobia towards the serpent variation of Grimm."

"A fact that would've come to light previously had you not fallen into your habit of enrolling random youths into this academy on a whim," the disciplinarian replied flatly, to which the Headmaster returned his gaze to the screen with a small smirk.

"I have no doubt that they will endure."

**_..._**

"Oh no! I really doubt Seul can handle this!" Ruby squeaked as she held both hands to her mouth in worry, teams RWBY, JNPR and VNDS raising their brows at her while they tried to get a good look at the monitor she was practically covering in her proximity.

"What, just cuz he's hesitating right now?" Sun asked in curiosity, no sound being transferred through the screen to give them an idea what anyone in the forest was saying.

"No," the crimsonette quipped, turning around to face the faunus-boy, "Seul had a bad experience with a den of young Taijitu's when he was younger, something about one of his first paid jobs in his line of work..."

The white knight drew back with some surprise, now cutting in as the new students on screen engaged the dozen or so Grimm surrounding them, "And how exactly do you know that? That's not exactly something well known about him, Ruby..."

At that, the girl chuckled nervously, her gaze slowly dropping to the floor as she replied, "Well uh, hehe... it's cuz he and I... _talk_... every now and then..."

"Hmph. Try every night," Blake corrected smugly, to which the red leader quickly shot her a shocked glare, "I can hear your muffled giggling every night, and I don't need night-vision to see that your scroll screen is on under your covers - it still casts light over the ceiling. I haven't gotten a full night of sleep in _weeks_."

"_Weeks?_" Yang now echoed with an increasingly ominous air at her sister, her protective side now coming to the fore, "Ruby. We will have words later."

The hooded girl gulped before turning back to the screen.

**_..._**

_POW!_

And with another blast, another Taijitu head came clean off as Biyu hopped off its stump of a neck, quickly flipping back to tag-team the other half with her steampunk partner.

"That's five down!" Terra shouted as she felled another Grimm with Cipher with a large Boulder to its skull, "Seven to go!"

"_That's too bloody many!_" the cryptic retorted as his following volley of gunfire at another striking Taijitu came up empty with small clicks of absent bullets, "_I'm out of ammo and I'm pretty sure we'll all be out soon... and we'll be in a huge load of codswallop if that happens!_"

Flipping in between two strikes from alternating snake heads, May lashed out an electrified ribbon strike to the eye of one of the Grimm, the creature hissing in pain long enough for Date to leap across and deliver a fatal slash to its exposed throat. However, after trying to unload a few rounds of dust-enhanced rounds at the other head, Biyu drew back as the revolvers only made the sounds of bullet-less _clicks_.

"I'm out of ammo!"

Turning to face her Date called out, "Then stay back and protect the relic! Do you still have it?"

Pulling out the Dust crystal from the pocket in her short shorts, she held it out for him to see.

"It's green," May observed in curiosity, "Ours is green too!"

"Most crystals came in pairs but some in threes, I suppose," Date replied, the two making their way towards the girl, "But I guess- Biyu, _look out!_"

Having forgotten about the other head that had slithered around to attack from behind, the gun-slinger barely had time to dodge the fangs that still got a piece of her arm in its strike.

"_Aaagh!_"

"The crystal!"

The steampunk warrior tried to catch the falling crystal as May recovered the girl, but he was too late. Snapping its jaws shut, the Grimm crushed the Dust crystal that Biyu had let go when it slashed her arm. Without a moment to lose, Date quickly shifted his sword into reverse grip and slit the snake's head along the side, the Grimm promptly convulsing and exploding in a blast of black mist.

"_Seul, a little assistance right now would be aces!_" Cipher shouted with evident frustration as his rail guns flexed over his shoulder and shot through the heads of a seventh Grimm, "_And these blasted shoulder weapons of mine won't be able to recharge in time to keep the last ones back!_"

His breathing still quick and shallow, the boy glanced at the scene as if a spectator in a horror film, but once his friend's words got to his ears, Seul finally snapped back into the situation. Forcing himself to calm down, he glanced at his weapon and back at the group of students - Date was trying to tend to Biyu's wound as they fell back and an exhausted Cipher was pulling May back as Terra raised a last-ditch earthen wall to block out the massive Grimm.

Seul knew it wouldn't hold.

_Ka-CRASH! NYAAAAA!_

A frown of fear now turning into a darkened scowl, the boy steeled his nerves as the Taijitus broke through the wall and he mumbled under his breath, "Just another mark."

_Swishswishswish-FWOOOM!_

It only took a few air-compressing motions with his opened umbrella before Seul charged his signature strike with aura, slashing out his chokuto which unleashed a razor wind that slashed through nine of the ten Taijitu heads. Now falling to the ground in disintegrating heaps, the last Grimm head twitched before being stabbed in the back of its skull by an expressionless Date.

"_That_... is for Biyu."

Lightly panting as he approached the boy, Cipher raised his face ask as he placed his hand on the winded boy's shoulder, "You cheeky monkey... that wos crackin', mate! Thank you."

And with a light buzzing sound in Seul's ear, Gabe added smugly, '_And all caught on camera. Just for the record, Ruby seemed real worried about you the whole time._..'

"And _why_ would that matter?" Seul quipped, narrowing his eyes at the smirking cryptic in front of him as the voice in his ear replied.

'_Ohh... let's just call it a Woman's Intuition~_'

Deadpanning at the remark, the boy seethed in reply, "You people are the _worst_..."

"Thank you," Date now began as he approached the group, "That was beginning to get a little too dangerous for my taste. Unfortunately, Biyu and I will have to go back to the temple and see if any relics remain."

"That's terribly unfortunate," Terra replied with a slight frown, "You both are excellent fighters - I wish you both luck in your endeavor."

And approaching the steampunk warrior from behind and placing a hand on his arm, Biyu looked up at him with a small smile, "I'm sure there's still something at the forest temple. Also, my arm is healed, which is a good sign!"

"Ever the optimist, eh?" he now retorted with a teasing grin before turning back to the group, "Very well. We'll see you all soon. Good luck."

And with that, the students parted ways, the cryptic giving the boy a pat of genuine gratitude on the back as they headed towards the cliff.

* * *

As soon as the three teams back at Beacon saw the four new students get back to the cliff, Yang turned to face the group with a small grin, "'Kay, I guess it's time."

"For?" Blake asked with a hint of curiosity from behind the book she had already pulled out to read.

The teams immediately became interested in the conversation when Yang looked at the heiress and the two traded understanding nods. Each now standing side by side,mYang crossed her arms before explaining any further.

"The newbs won't be back for another two hours or so, and the assignment of teams won't happen until later this afternoon. So, I've decided to visit Vin's grave before they get back."

The remaining teams shared confused and concerned glances before Ruby tugged at the hem of the brawler's skirt beside her, "Yang... are you sure?"

The blonde sighed as she looked down, scratching the back of her head before speaking up with a shrug, "I guess it's better that I do, y'know? Some things are better taken care of when you've had some closure... and I think this'll do that."

"Well, I for one won't stop her," Jaune began firmly, now standing up with a small smile at his fellow blonde, "Do you mind if we join you?"

Sun now stood as well, nodding in agreement and returning Blake's small smile at his action, "And us too? We've been meaning to visit him for a while now, actually."

"Sounds good to me," the brawler replied with a growing grin before turning to the blue-haired student, "So now that you guys are coming, you wouldn't happen to have means of... _transportation_, would ya, Neptune?"

The young man in question cast a furtive glance at the white knight before sheepishly producing the keys to ADA with a slightly nervous chuckle, "Eheh... How'd you know I'd have them?"

"Because you're _you_," Weiss replied with heavy finality, but with a deadpan glare that didn't have its usual strength as she was barely hiding a small smirk at him.

"_Fine_," he replied, quickly regaining his cool composure as everyone began to stand in preparation to leave, "Though these are copies of the ones Jaune gave back to Ozpin... so, we may want to keep this on the down-low, 'kay?"

And with small nods and chuckles, the three teams made their way out of the dorm and towards the hangar.

Though it only took a few minutes to board the craft and begin their trajectory to the ruins, Yang felt the minutes stretch on like hours as she waited by the window in the row that she and Davin had gotten used to being seated in before the fateful battle. The sun hung over the horizon, still a few hours before sunset, but she watched the skies and contemplated the distant secrets they must've held, imagining the secrets Davin must've been trying to find whenever he lost himself in staring at the clouds.

'What were you looking for?' she mused internally as the three teams engaged in conversation all around her, their words seemingly distant in her seemingly uncharacteristic period of reflection, 'Whatever it was, I hope you find it... I hope you _found_ it...'

Shaking her head at her continued use of the present tense when thinking about the young man, Yang idly ran a hand through her hair as she sighed to keep calm, trying to go through the better memories they'd shared before things took a turn for the worse. The day they met... their first kiss... even fooling around during the night they'd spent in Velvet's old room. The thoughts brought a warm smile to her lips as she closed her eyes to picture those moments, content with being able to live a life in which she could always recall such intimate moments with someone she truly cared about. Someone who had taught her that her semblance didn't need to be a barrier between her occasionally unruly emotions and others.

Someone she loved.

"Yang... Yang?"

The blonde turned a distant gaze at the silver-eyed girl trying to get her attention, her vision now focusing as the side bulk doors went down on the unmistakeable landmark a few hundred yards away, sticking out among the small memorial stones at the edge of the ruins. Nodding once to acknowledge her sister, Yang stood up and joined the others who were already stepping out of ADA.

"Here we go..."

"Hmm, it seems the plant life is finally returning to the area," Velvet observed as the students looked around the immense clearing that marked the lethal blast radius of Davin's final attempt to end the battle.

Yang slightly shuddered, mentally noting that the area had indeed grown from the barren dead zone into a budding meadow that stretched for hundreds of yards in either direction...

'Just like in my dreams... Creepy...'

But now snapped out of her thoughts, Yang turned to see a concerned amber-eyed gaze from her partner who also had placed a hand on her shoulder in a gesture of reassurance, "This was a good idea. I think everyone needed this."

"Yeah," the blonde replied morosely, turning to glance at the heiress who returned a small smirk in support as the group neared the large stone, "Closure and stuff."

Maybe it was that they outstripped the other two teams, or maybe they stayed back to let the four girls take the lead, but team RWBY made it to the stone first with Ruby at the fore, teams JNPR and VNDS stopping a few feet behind them as the crimsonette now spoke up.

"Well," she began at the stone after a short sigh, "Where to begin? It's been a couple months now, and plenty of stuff has happened I guess. School ended, we got our project-slash-investigation ready, and then there was the tournament..."

"Which _Jaune_ of all people won, if anyone could believe it," Weiss remarked with a raised brow, earning an exclamation of mock-offense from the knight behind her.

"Hey!"

"And I don't doubt that in a way, Davin has been able to know this through _us_," Blake now interjected with a small smile, glancing back at the group and then at Yang before Pyrrha caught on and added to her words.

"Beyond our understanding of life and the confines of passing, it could very well be that he's watching us, satisfied that his sacrifice wasn't in vain..."

"And that we can be safe and continue living our lives thanks to him," Sun joined in with a grin, smiling at the catgirl as she stepped back and silently took his arm in hers.

"...Monty knows," Ren concluded with a solemn nod, content with those around him and their words of consolation, "He may very well be watching this beside him from above."

With a pleased nod, Yang glanced at the cherished group of friends around her for a moment of meaningful silence before turning back to the stone. The grave of someone she had once held cherished above all.

"You guys are right," she spoke up with a light sigh, her voice without its usual luster as she continued to gaze at the epitaph, "He may be gone... but we do him well by remembering. I accept that now."

Placing her hand on the brawler's shoulder, Ruby continued, "It's hard, but he'd be glad to know that we are able to live happy lives thanks to what he did for us... and even though leaving must've been the hardest thing he'd ever done, I don't doubt that keeping you safe was his greatest reason of all. I would know - after all these years of you protecting me when we were younger, I know an act of love when I see it!"

Chuckling as the brawler grinned and pulled her sister in for a tight side hug, Yang kissed the crimsonette's head before replying, "You know what, you're right! I guess this whole time I've been so caught up with having lost him that I didn't get to thinking enough about the reasons why he did it..."

It made sense. There was much more to this than her loss - what Davin had done meant life to everyone. And feeling as if a heavy weight were being lifted from her chest, Yang nodded once more to herself as she let her sister go and cast the gravestone a warmer glance.

"But still..." she added, reaching out with her hand to place it on the stone as she had done dozens of times in her dreams with a brief pulse of warm aura, "My only wish is that he could somehow still be here with us-"

_Click_

"-Huh?"

With the exception of the blonde brawler, the students stepped back in surprise when Yang's hand never hit the stone - the clicking sound from her hand meeting some invisible object preceding a flash of orchid light from the stone which coalesced around the epitaph and receded into a single glowing line like drops of liquid over glass.

"No _way_," the wide-eyed girl mumbled under her breath as she began reaching out at the hair-thin glowing line of orchid light, realization dawning on her at the dream's significance as Jaune finally reached a realization of his own.

He knew where he had seen that happen before, he knew what device it was... and he knew _exactly_ what could happen next.

"Yang, wait! _Don't touch_-"

But it was too late. Suddenly, as if pushed by some unknown force, Yang found herself falling towards it.

And then, in an impossible feat of the physical world, she fell _in._

* * *

**A/N: Aha! I'm back :) I will admit, writing has become difficult lately due to life responsibilities and stuff, and what little time I've had I've spent on writing for _The Gamer Girl_, which once again I admit has gotten a greater spotlight in its initial chapters than I could ever have possibly imagined! I can now understand why many writers keep their updates to two or three stories at a time...**

**That being said, I apologize for the wait and unfortunately must warn that there will likely continue to be 2-3 weeks between chapters as I continue trying to find the right balance between work, hobbies, life and all that jazz. So yep... you've been warned! However, and this I state this with the greatest satisfaction, it's really thanks to _YOU_, dear reader, and your support from the beginning that has kept me motivated to write for this long and to continue making progress as a writer through different stories! :D**

**So not to worry, _Chronicle_ is a healthy as ever and will continue till the end :)**

**And now, time for some overdue thank-you notes, which due to the sheer volume I will limit to ten (this time only) taken from the last three chapters:**

***RononDexSpecialist: Thank you! I appreciate the kind words, and I'd like to let you know that I really liked your pitch and have implemented your weapon idea into the story! So stay tuned ;)**

***Dj-Juju: Thank you! And 69... hehe, that's like a sex thing :P In case you didn't know, I'm quoting Sun's VA there haha :)**

***Nick: Thank you! I was talking to a reviewer and the idea came to me, all will be explained soon :D**

***SpanishBulldog63: Thank you! And yep, things are definitely only going to get more interesting for Yang... As for the references, well, I couldn't help it :)**

***TheBluePsychoticStrategist: Thank you! And me too!**

***Marronmario: Me neither.**

***ImSoAwesome: Thank you! And those scenes were incredibly fun to write :D As for Cyrus, he's like the Tony Stark of this story - the only superhero without any "super" abilities. It'll likely be that he never learns to use aura directly.**

***leBlekSzedou: ehehe, I'm only going to say this - I've already given what I believed to be a really obvious clue during the VNN interview chapter. That's the only reason why I never deleted it! But no one has figured it out get :( Ah well, I'll give a shoutout to anyone who does before the chapter that answers the question gets posted! ;D**

***Guest: Thank you! I have indeed put countless hours of thought into the plot line, which is another reason why I will not leave_ Chronicle _until the story is finally done! And WindRose? ...what's that? ;)**

***Tommy2486: Isn't that an 80s song?**

**And finally, I must give due credit to the awesome creators of the OCs introduced this chapter:_ leBlekSzedou _(Date) and_ louisblake,lb _(Biyu)! I know I initially said they didn't make the cut but I saw an opportunity to add some cameos and I took it! Muahaha! I hope they were true to character :) And with that, I'll sign out with a reminder to_ Fave, Follow and Review_ to continue showing your much appreciated support! Take care, and stay tuned for the next chapter: _Renaissance!_**

**Happy Reading!**


	72. Vol 3-3: Renaissance

**_Renaissance  
_**_-III-_

* * *

_'What is this? ...What is this place?'_

As if the blankness of the pitch black abyss weren't enough, the sensation of her very thoughts echoing through the nothingness was enough to put Yang on edge. She might have even had goosebumps had she been able to see or feel her body. Needless to say, she did not like this.

Not one bit.

"H-Hello?" she tested aloud in question, surprised that her sense of hearing and speaking seemed to be affected differently when she actually _acted_ like she was talking in this strange place, "Is anyone there?"

A low hissing sound caused her to falter, maybe more in mind than in absent body, figuring that she might be turning toward the sound but unsure if she had done so without any point of reference in the perfect darkness. Even then, it didn't seem like a threatening sound - Yang's extremities may have been missing, but her fight or flight instincts were perfectly intact.

"Who was that? Did you say something?"

Silence.

It was unsettling, unnerving, constantly threatening to unravel her mind as she spent what felt like an eternity floating through empty space. It was a sensation Yang had never felt before and one she had immediately decided to never go through again as soon as she figured out how to get out from this. It wasn't like sleeping... heck, it wasn't even like a coma. It was like death. Except like this... you could experience what it was _really_ like. Without a single one of her senses picking up any form of stimuli, Yang found herself constantly thinking in her mind just to keep herself sane. And so the memories came.

Landfall. That's where they were before she ended up in here... it was her choice, and hers alone, to come here.

_'Oh Oum... please don't tell me the others got caught up in this place, too. Not the team... not Ruby...'_

It didn't seem that pondering the subject any further would bring them any closer anytime soon, though.

Initiation. Seul and Jaune's friends had made it through; they were okay at least, on their way to Beacon and surely soon to receive their official assignment. Maybe if worse came to worse and she couldn't come back, they could pick up the torch where RWBY had left off...

_'No... no, don't think like that. I'll figure it out. I just, I just need to think...'_

The Trials. Nothing much to be thought there. Yang hadn't really paused to give it thought... well, that wasn't the right word. She had all the time in the word to relive it, but she was actively trying not to. No, she hadn't _wanted_ to give it thought. The Grimm, the power... the dreams she'd begun to have because of it. Yang had chatted with Jaune about it and ended up chalking it up to some jacked up kind of PTSD, but maybe that's why she was refusing to think about it... maybe deep down, she knew it couldn't be.

And here she was... thinking about it. Of _him_.

Yang let out a miffed groan, not caring how loud it was considering no one would hear it anyway.

_sss..._

"Wha-" Yang started, startled by the sudden sound through space and now more on edge than ever, "I heard that! Who's there?"

_...SSStrange._

The word was stated so softly, like a radio with the volume slowly being turned up until the voice could be heard but just barely, that Yang still wasn't sure she'd actually heard anything in the first place.

"Strange?" she echoed in reply, "Who _are_ you? In case you haven't noticed, _this whole Oum-friggin place_ is 'strange'."

Silence.

_...VVVery ssstrange,_ the voice continued, murky as if someone were speaking underwater but slowly gaining clarity by the second, _You arrre neither Arc nor Grimmm..._

"Yeah. Big whoop," Yang retorted flatly, hiding the rising curiosity at the mention of the name as she continued, "What's so strange about that?"

_...YYYou_, the voice continued, finally gaining its full quality to reveal the deep tone of its source, _You can hear me._

"So what. You another poor idiot who got trapped in here like me?"

_Yes. As a matter of fact,_ it replied, causing her to cock a possibly imaginary brow in surprise, _Though I managed to leave shortly after._

At that, Yang balked unabashedly, "Wait... what!? Uh, mind helping a sister _out,_ maybe!? I got people to go to, family to protect! What's happening here!?"

The reply wasn't exactly what the brawler had been hoping for.

_This place... your mind is unraveling in here. Will unravel in here. Your thoughts, your memories... they power the device while not in possession of a suitable owner._

"Um."

Yang really didn't have a comeback to that. Nor did she feel very good anymore about this place, as if she didn't already. But that's when the thought struck her like a million switches going off to power a large neon sign in her brain: her abilities, the dreams... the memories...

"I'm... I'm in the _Trace_, aren't I?"

_Hmm... very strange indeed._

"I _am_, aren't I!?" she repeated, quickly becoming impatient with the awfully patient stranger just thinking aloud in a place that would literally make her completely lose it the more time she spent inside.

_No,_ the voice continued pensively as if towards itself, _Can't be... You. Young woman. How did you find this place._

"I'm not saying a _thing_ until you tell me how I can leave."

The silence after that was notably different as far as Yang could tell... without a spoken word, the very darkness around her seemed to become a presence. A hostile one. And one that admittedly began to frighten her.

_YOU... you would be willing to cast aside a viable source of salvation for a dying world for the sake of your momentary pacification! I sense it, the Trace drew you here, yet you still wish to leave without knowing why!_

"Oho, that's _rich_," Yang quipped in reply, sure that her rage would've started heating her up had she still been in the visible spectrum, "Coming from the weirdo voice that still doesn't tell me what this place _IS!_ And last I checked, we SAVED the world, thank you very much!"

_Heh_, the voice unexpectedly countered with a chuckle, _I thought much the same when I was first trapped here as well. I can tell you with all certainty, young woman, that the very continued operation of this device proves all the contrary, as its single remaining function is to serve as a beacon... one meant to drift towards massive influxes of energy in the multiverse in search of a viable possessor until threats of global catastrophes from these influxes are neutralized. _

"Oh please. How am I supposed to believe that!"

_Because I am the one who created it._

Yang paused in thought, unsure what to believe since for all she knew, the place was already pulling apart her mind by the second. Still, it did answer some questions. She'd simply have to settle with asking a few more.

"Alright, weird person. Let's say I know a guy... _knew_ a guy... one who could use the Trace. You saying he was meant to bring balance to the universe or some cheesy junk like that?"

_In this verse, only one family line had the potential to wield this weapon. Such a person would've been very powerful indeed, powerful enough to do exactly that. However... there are those with enough understanding of the energy used to build this device who could manipulate it as well; my subconscious that I planted in this device in the form of a base operating system was designed to differentiate between the two..._

The brawler was unsure how to take those words, both for what they meant at face value and because of the almost forlorn way the voice had spoken the last bit of it. However, her musing was cut short as the voice began pointedly towards the blonde.

_You... however, I cannot compute. You are neither Arc nor Grimm... therefore, I need more data! Who are you! And HOW did you find this place!?_

"Wait," Yang began slowly as she came to a growing realization, "What if I told you... that I may not _be_ an Arc, but was _connected_ to one?"

_Impossible_.

Honestly, the speed of that response was almost insulting.

"Hey buddy, _you_ asked!" Yang shouted in reply, "My mind's been practically _tearing itself apart_ over the past few weeks obsessing over this stupid device and this stupid place, and I'm sick and tired of it! So yeah, I came here to get it off my mind, and out of my heart! Okay!? Judge me if you want, but what's more to cry over a dying world if my world's already _dead! _Davin... he's _dead_, got it...?"

And then, the most improbable thing happened.

A flutter of something catching the brawler's eye before she could completely retreat into herself and shut down, Yang looked up in utter disbelief at a face fight in front of her. Large, holographic in nature, and no way of knowing how close it was or wasn't to her... but discernible. And familiar.

A face of a grey-eyed long-forgotten man from a dream Yang couldn't forget, scrutinizing her intently with furrowed brows before repeating the single word.

_Im...**possible...**_

"Yeah... I'm getting used to hearing that these days."

_No... you do not understand,_ the man now continued, casting the faintest light over the area around his holographic face but otherwise not lighting up anything else in the infinite space, _it may be possible... to do it again._

Honestly, Yang had not been the least bit surprised at who she saw after he had revealed himself, having guessed the voice all too well. But that last phase definitely piqued her curiosity.

"Do what now."

The face flickered for a moment, motionless like a computer screen flickering while computing a large amount of data, before continuing, _The Trace only had sufficient power stored for a single transfer... but I believe you may have enough energy stored within to power another. Young woman, if this is true, and you were connected at one point to Davin... then please. Focus on that part of yourself now. Comply, and you will be granted leave from this place..._

Yang was unsure of how to take that either, frozen for a moment at what the man's words could mean as a conversation held long before with a fellow blonde sped through her mind, but she nodded. Or at least, felt like she nodded.

"Okay."

_Very good,_ the voice began as what felt like a gust of wind began surrounding Yang's area of consciousness,_ Focus. Reach to it and shut out all other senses... Only few remain who can halt the onslaught of darkness. Great peril lies ahead... though you will not be without aid. Take care of my boy..._

The wind picked up into a whistling howl that grew around a growing swirl of white light, Yang barely hearing his last words as the flash became too much to bear...

_Our worlds depend on it._

* * *

"Yang?"

"_Yang!_"

"Holy _Oum_, Yang!"

The voices felt murky in the swirl of light and sound until it all finally started to sort itself out, Yang's mind discerning one sense from the other until she realized she was finally back on solid ground. Unsurprisingly, the next sensation she felt was the powerful tackle from a very teary-eyed crimsonette.

"Ohmygosh Yang... w-we thought we lost you... we were here for hours!"

Reaching up her arm, which she was suddenly much more thankful to have as she saw it now, Yang placed it around her sniffling sister's shoulders to pull her close.

"Me too... no worries, though. I'm back."

"What happened," Blake asked, brow furrowed as the cogs in her mind worked furiously to decipher the meaning of the strange phenomenon, "Was that the Trace?"

"How would it have stayed here?" Weiss noted, the tiniest chinks in her icy persona revealing that she was clearly rattled a bit herself, but their queries went drowned out as Jaune now stepped in, his gaze immediately catching the brawlers' after what she figured was him checking their immediate vicinity.

"What. Happened."

Their gazes remained locked for a moment more before the blonde brawler finally huffed in defeat, "I... I can't really remember..."

The rest of Yang's team and even some of team JNPR began glancing at her unsurely, finding it hard to believe that such an experience could be so easily forgotten before Jaune knelt down and placed his hand on Yang's empty shoulder with a sigh.

"I guess... I can relate. It'll take a while. Whaddaya say we start heading on back, then... it's been a long enough day as is."

Her team helping her up until she felt okay standing on her own, Yang gave Jaune a light nod before the three teams readied to head back towards ADA. It was a strange feeling, or dream maybe... all Yang knew that whatever had happened seemed to have drained her of something she'd held dear. Or at least, of the negative emotion that came from it.

"Yeah... that might be it," she mumbled to herself, catching Ruby's attention.

"Huh? You okay, sis?"

"Uh huh," Yang noted with a small smile before pausing in her step to turn and look back at the lone grave, "I guess I just need one more second is all..."

Ruby cocked her head at her sister, silently waving a hand over at Jaune who then stopped the other two teams just before they could reach the Bullhead. In their curiosity, they all turned to gaze at the brawler, the setting sun's rays casting a golden hue over her and the meadow around her as she spoke.

"You may be gone, but I'll always keep you with me, 'kay? That's how I'll wait for you... maybe one day when I'm gone too, I'll go looking for you instead."

The next moment that passed wasn't easy for anyone present to watch, the grim reminder of what they'd lost sitting right in front of them as the usually unstoppable young woman in front of it faced it with all she had left to give. But if there was anything that helped lift their spirits, it was that after a moment, a good long moment, Yang turned back around to face them all with a wide smile.

"Kay guys, got that off my chest. Guess we can call it a-!"

_Uuuuuugggghh..._

The strange sound seemed to echo around the meadow, immediately causing the students to freeze as they looked out around the meadow for the source of the noise.

_Uuuuug. Guuuughhhh..._

Velvet furrowed her brows, trying to spy the culprit as best she could with her enhanced vision, "I can't see it. Is it a Grimm?"

"There! Over there!" Sun shouted, the vision of every one of teams RWBY, JNPR, and VNDS following the point of his finger to the strange and heavily bandaged limb that appeared over the massive gravestone.

Jaune unsheathed Crocea Mors, already pumping in some aura into the blade as he calmly waved down his team to stay back before everyone froze at the sight of the hooded figure that appeared around the side of the boulder.

Hunched over, it barely looked like a man; what wasn't covered in patched thermal fabric and jeans, or yards and yards of dirty cloth wraps and bandages, was covered in a knee-length heavy shawl that came up over the figure's head completely in a large hood.

"_Ooooooouuuuuuughhh_... that's, gonna be a _special_ kind of hangover right there..."

The very air seemed to stand still in the following moment that apprehension turned to realization, a moment broken only by the sound of Sun accidentally dropping his weapon on ADA's boarding ramp.

"What are you?" Jaune noted, Crocea Mors poised to strike as he remained a few dozen yards from the unknown target, "For your sake, I suggest you make it quick."

A amused snort from the figure before the reply, "Really? That's new, rolling out the welcome wagon like that. Sorry bud, but I'm still the one in control here."

A few of the students traded unsure glances at the strangely familiar voice as Jaune's team made to approach the blonde's side. Silently motioning them back, Pyrrha raised a brow in concern until the knight's intention was made clear in containing the possible threat - concentrating his aura, Jaune spawned eight aural clones, each in different states of armament, to soundlessly surround the hooded figure.

"Sorry, but I don't see how we count as buds," Jaune noted calmly as his eyes remained closed in concentration, "Why don't you take off the hood and see for yourself?"

The unknown person remained fixed in the direction of Jaune's voice, making no move to otherwise acknowledge the eight spectral entities surrounding him completely in wait as he replied, "You know, you say that every time I have this dream. And every time I have to tell you, after these God-forsaken dreams started, I promised I wouldn't take this off until I was here for real... y'know, couldn't stand the disappointment of it being fake when I woke."

"Hah! And what makes you think you're dreaming?" Jaune mocked aloud, increasingly confused but unwilling to show it to the possibly hostile figure judging by the massive amounts of negative vibes rolling off of him, "Take off the hood and see for yourself... unless you need me to do it _for_ you."

"_No_," the hooded figure replied sharply, Jaune feeling the strange energy coming from it intensifying but then watching him raising his hands up in a surprising show of nonchalant placation, "We've gone through this, too - you know the moment I engage you, a flood of Walkers swarm us all from the forest behind me."

"We'll see about that..."

"Jaune, don't-"

Jaune winced at the figure's use of his name, the familiar tone of it causing every puzzle piece to fall into place in his mind, but it was too late. Having already given the mental command to his clones, the ghostly white apparitions all charged the figure at once... only for everyone present to gasp as the hooded figure reacted at the last possible second to the threats.

Two previously unseen metallic cylinders seemingly floating into his hands, the figure dropped into a crouch before powering his weapons and executing a perfect spin move to slash through every spectre with twirls of what could only be the powerful humming lightblades of Starkillers. The hooded figure returning to his original crouch facing a stunned Jaune, one half of Starkillers held up and out in front of him prepared to defend while the other was held behind him with his other hand in a reverse grip, the students could only watch in muted shock until the figure suddenly paused.

Standing up and turning to seemingly look at the forest behind them despite the heavy hood over his face, the hooded figure cocked his head to the side, "Huh. That's weird... normally we get mobbed at this point."

"That's because this isn't a dream," Jaune began as he slowly, _slowly_, began taking a few steps toward the figure before daring to utter the word he didn't think he'd use again to refer to someone in the land of the living, "_Davin_."

Jaune dared to hope the minute he saw the increasingly familiar figure - his stance, his voice, and even his weapons said it all - flinch at the use of the name. Slowly turning back to face the knight as they now stood only a few feet apart, the figure replied, "You mean... I'm, I'm actually _here?_ In... Remnant?"

"Y-Yeah," Jaune nodded, an impossible grin spreading across his face as his voice cracked under the building emotion, "But... how?"

The change in the air was palpable with the figure's following action of reaching up and pulling back his hood to reveal the wide-eyed grey eyes of Davin Arc as he looked upon everyone there.

"I have... _no idea_."

_fft-PLAT!_

The young man had no further chance to postulate as he was suddenly speed-tackled by a very emotional crimsonette, the short leader burying her head in his chest with muffled sobs as she began, "I-I thot we lst yew! But yer bck! Yr really _bck!_"

"I... guess I really am, aren't I..."

And one by one, the remainder of teams VNDS, JNPR and RWBY began making their way to the young man, many hugs and tears traded as the disbelief finally started wearing off into elation at his return. Until of course... only one certain blonde was left. Amid the laughs and jokes about Davin's derelict appearance, the group went silent as Yang finally approached him with slow, calculated steps. Catching sight of her and giving her a tired grin, the young man could only shrug as he swallowed the growing know in his throat.

"Y-You know, you have no idea how long I've spent imagining what I'd say if this moment ever came..."

Finally breaking out a small smile herself, Yang replied with teary eyes as she momentarily fumbled with her pouch and brought out the golden medallion with the inscription on the back visible for all to read, "This told me everything I needed to know..."

Few eyes remained dry as the pair then drew each other into a long, warm embrace, Yang nuzzling her head into the crook of Davin's neck as she added, "You big dumb dummie... never leave me again..."

The young man merely smiled, craning his neck a bit to kiss the brawler on the head before responding, "Best idea I've heard all day."

Nearby, Pyrrha turned up to the knight as she leaned into him with a warm smile, "You're making that face you make when you're trying to understand something going way over your head."

"Oh, you mean my resting face for practically our whole first semester at school?" Jaune joked lightly, quirking a brow at the Mistrali as he decided to put aside his growing mountain of questions for later, "I guess you'd know that face better than anyone."

"I suppose I would," she continued with a light chuckle before musing, "I wonder how Seul might take this..."

The knight chuckled darkly as he replied with as much conviction as a good friend would likely have, "Probably something along the lines of-"

* * *

"What the flying fu-"

"_Call_ the bloody priest," Cipher stated, unwittingly interrupting the stunned umbrella-totter as the four new students stared at the young man, "Cos apparently, there's a wanker who actually _can_ come back from the dead!"

"Nice to see you, too," Davin idly stated as he walked by and patted a slack-jawed Seul on the shoulder, Yang all but glued to his side in a side embrace ever since leaving Landfall and having been updated with the very _very_ long story and result of The Trials, "And _technically_ Cy, I never died. Just... FYI."

"So what exactly did happen?" May asked with a curiosity that made Ruby cringe a bit with the superior levels of adorableness that even she might've been capable of, "Last time I saw you, you literally _flew away_ before causing the entire ruins to implode..."

Davin could feel a slender arm clutching his side just a little tighter, turning to rub Yang affectionately on the side with a warm smile before turning back to the young woman to reply, "That's a little complicated. Long story short, I opened the Trace - which as we'd found out while I was in this world was a sub-dimensional storage space - into a full-on wormhole. It sucked everything in until I could close it from the inside and well... I waited."

"And the unabridged version?" Blake spoke up, referencing what had happened to the young man directly for the first time on her part, "Specifically on the 'waiting' part..."

The four teams, scattered and otherwise splayed about in team VNDS' room, waited or a response as the young man sighed in thought.

"Also complicated. And for now, I'm afraid, a story I don't quite know how to tell yet."

Jaune narrowed his eyes at the young man, trying to think of a way to get at least something from him, "So something did happen while you were in there... And you can remember now? Did you meet... anyone... inside?"

The knight's resolve faltered a bit as he, along with everyone else present, saw the complicated expressions flitting across Davin's face, the young man's gaze fixed upon the floor before finally shaking his head.

"There's a lot about the Trace I still don't understand... but there's a lot more I _do_ understand. For starters, I'm not so sure I was inside the Trace the whole time," he replied, gaining a few questioning glances from those in the room, "But I am sure that going through it again helped me regain my memories I'd lost the first time I came through..."

"The _first_ time you came through?" Sun asked, still in shock at the day's unbelievable turn to the unexpected.

"Yeah... the first time. Sometime this year, in this world, Jaune activated the Trace, falling in and coming out with myself in tow... I guess... a lot like Yang did today. I couldn't remember a thing aside from my name and years of combat training ingrained in muscle memory. It was before I met you guys."

"Oh," the monkey-faunus could only reply lamely, letting Davin continue where he'd left off.

"Anyway, in regards to meeting people... I can't say I met anyone of mutual connection between us," Davin noted towards Jaune, a somber mood setting in as the knight nodded in acknowledgment, "But I can say that I _was_ able to confirm that I am indeed your great-granduncle."

A few surprised murmurs and exclamations began all at once in the room before Davin repeated, "That's right, guys. I'm an Arc."

"Uh, like a really really _old_ Arc?" Neptune added incredulously, followed by Nora.

"Cuz I'm preeetty sure the 'great' and 'grand' parts aren't to say how awesome you are."

"Heh, I always knew I was into older guys," Yang chuckled with a raised brow, "But... I didn't think _that_ much older..."

"Relax," Davin supplied with a reassuring smirk, "Some kind of subspace suspended animation from the first time I got stuck in the Trace, I think. So I _am_ about eighteen and change now... relatively."

"So you really did figure out quite a bit after you went through," Ren noted thoughtfully, his gaze never leaving the young man which seemed to bring Davin back into his pensive state of mind once more.

"The little stuff, yeah. But there's some big stuff... some really big stuff, that I think I'll need to run by someone who's more of an authority on the subject than I once thought before I open that can of worms on anyone else..."

A short silence before Jaune finally spoke up, "Ozpin?"

A brief nod from the young man in reply.

"Matter of fact, I should probably talk to him now... I have a feeling that there's no time to lose on it," Davin decided aloud before turning to rest his forehead against Yang's.

"But I'll be seeing _you_ after that. Meet me in our old training spot later?"

The brawler nodded, tilting her face up to meet the young man's lips with hers for a brief moment before he took his leave from the group with a few short words of departure.

However, no sooner did Davin close the door behind him when the small smile fell from his face.

Yes... Ozpin had much to explain, indeed.

* * *

**A/N:** _Bam. Bet you guys didn't see this chapter coming! Heh, I wanted to close off 2015 with a bang, so I'm updating as many things as I can. I can't say which other stories I'll be updating before New Year's, but meh, I'll wing it._

_In any case, the future of **Chronicle** is stable but slow. I can't say it's high on the priority list, so I'm sorry to say that it will likely not be updated much more often during 2016. I can't tell you how many times I've considered a rewrite, especially since having learned so much more about writing and characterization in the past 15 months I've been on this site as a writer (which IS all the writing experience I have period hah). Yet, I'm torn between sentiment and logic on this one, between keeping it as is and scrapping it all to redo an updated one with basically the same plot. Bah, I hate decisions._

_So I'm taking the easy way out unfortunately... focusing on some of the other stories I got while figuring out what I'll do. It's a decision I gotta come up with, so it's not one I'll leave up to a poll... though I'm always open to advice and suggestions! But heck, it's never too late to **Fave, Follow, and Review** to show your support anyway, so feel free to do so!_

_Well, last **Chronicle** A/N for 2015 so until next year, dear reader!_

**_And Happy Reading!_**


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